You will often find African penguins on a beach as they like to soak up the sun’s rays and relax on land. Far off in the distance, you can see the quaint houses of this little coastal town in the Western Cape. The bright blue cloudless sky is slightly different in color from the darker blue of the sea.
The boulders clearly show where the water levels were as the water from the ocean darkens them. African penguins do have predators while they are on land. These predators are mongoose, Cape genet, domestic cats, and leopards, which all feed on the chicks.
A fascinating fact about penguins is that they sneeze to get rid of the seawater they consume while they are hunting in the sea for fish. The result of filtering their bloodstream by the supraorbital gland is that they clear it behind their eyes.
They also contain another special gland we call the ‘oil’ gland. As the name suggests, it produces an oil that creates a waterproof layer over the feathers. Resulting in a more streamline effect when they swim in the water, and it also insulates them in the cold water.
The African penguin, Spheniscus demersus, is endangered on the IUCN red list.
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Steven –
Boulders beach, a great place in Simonstown.👍
Anette Mossbacher –
The boulders beach is so beautiful. Thanks so much. 😀