Today is World
Penguin Day, what a good excuse to dig out all those cute, funny and sometimes thought-provoking photos of my favourite bird! The awareness day promotes the conservation of these amazing creatures and coincides with the northward migration of adelie penguins and their return to Antarctica after months spent at sea.
There are around 17 species of penguins and the little blue penguin is my favourite. At only 33 cm in height it's also referred to as the fairy penguin because of it's tiny size.
When a cargo ship ran aground on a reef near Tauranga, spilling 400 tons of fuel oil, 2000 sea birds died, but over 300 little blue penguins were cleaned of oil, as our pictures show.
Other species featured here include the magellanic penguin known for its braying call and the emperor penguin, at 120 cm the tallest of its kind.
Join me in protecting these amazing animals by becoming an Oceans Defender with Greenpeace!
Adelie penguins are threatened by airstrip construction at the French Dumont D'Urville base in 1989. © Greenpeace / Steve Morgan
An Emperor penguin walks past a Greenpeace placard at the Dumont D'Urville airstrip blockade in 1989. © Greenpeace / Steve Morgan
A group of Adelie penguins are seen here in the Antarctic sea ice of the Southern Ocean. © Greenpeace / Jiri Rezac
King penguins in the St. Andrews Bay on South Georgia in the Atlantic Ocean. © Markus Mauthe / Greenpeace
A group of Adelie penguins are seen here in Antarctic sea ice. © Greenpeace / Jiri Rezac
The largest penguin colony in the world can be found in the St.Andrews Bay on South Georgia in the Atlantic ocean, and they are all king penguins. © Markus Mauthe / Greenpeace
King penguins in the St. Andrews Bay on South Georgia in the Atlantic Ocean. © Markus Mauthe / Greenpeace
The print of a Little Blue penguin is a stark reminder of the dangers of opening up New Zealand waters to deep sea oil drilling. The penguin was one of an estimated 20,000 birds killed by oil spilled from the container ship, Rena, which ran aground on the Astrolab Reef, about 20km from the Port of Tauranga on 5 October 2011. © Greenpeace / Nigel Marple
Little blue penguins cleaned of oil swim in a pool to encourage them to preen and restore waterproofing in their coats. They were rescued after being coated in oil spilled from the container ship Rena. © Natalie Robertson / Greenpeace
Gentoo penguins at Stromness Harbour, South Georgia, in the Atlantic Ocean. © Markus Mauthe / Greenpeace
Snares crested penguins, the world's rarest, are found only on the Snares Islands, some 80 nautical miles south of Rakiura, New Zealand. An estimated 23,000 breeding pairs live here, with more than 100 colonies on the main island alone. © Greenpeace / Dave Hansford
King penguins, Heard Island, Antarctica. © Greenpeace / Gavin Newman
Activists from the Antarctic Ocean Alliance dressed as penguins visit the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources in Bremerhaven, Germany © Joerg Modrow / Greenpeace
Magellanic penguin on its way from the ocean to the cave to feed the kids, near Punta Arenas, Chile. © Greenpeace / Matthias Schickhofer
An Adelie penguin on the Antarctic ice shelf with the MY Arctic Sunrise in the background © Greenpeace / Kate Davison
