Friday, August 26, 2005

PENGUINS!

Emperor Penguins
Photograph courtesy of 75 Degrees South.

The Internet places a world of resources and data at (literally!) our fingertips.

If you like Geographic Exotica, there are tools like Google World. But if you want a human perspective, you have to go to Online Journaling World. Yep: the Bloggy-Sphere.

The picture above is courtesy of Simon, who writes at 75 Degrees South. He’s a British researcher who has been stationed in Antarctica since late 2003, a source of fascinating information about day-to-day life in the Deepest of the Deep South. Some of his photographs are magnificent, capturing an extraordinary natural setting - and others, like the one above, are simply whimsical.

No, it’s not an Army of Short Bastards in Formal Dinner Clothes. It’s a huge flock of emperor penguins. As you try and count them all, just try to imagine these little guys living outdoors 24/7 in one of the most hellish environments on Earth. Try, also, to imagine just how much Fish Protein this flock converts to Penguin Guano every day. Good thing Simon has heavy boots.

Go pay him a visit...you’ll be fascinated by the goings-on at the Bottom of the World.

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