In Antarctica, Emperor penguin populations collapse for lack of ice

In recent years, the emperor penguin population in Antarctica has declined considerably. The famous animals, Hollywood stars thanks to a famous documentary, are endangered for years.

Now, a new study reveals the details of the disaster that caused the disappearance of almost a generation in one of its larger colonies. The investigation was unveiled on April 25, on the occasion of World Penguin Day.

Halley Bay is the second largest colony of emperor penguins in the world and, according to the study, "suffered three years of near-total failure of reproduction". The most serious is that, according to the researchers, adult penguins do not show any signs of an attempt to rebuild the population. That is to say that they do not develop the typical behaviors of court and copulation.

For decades, the Brunt population has housed an average of 14,000 to 25,000 breeding pairs, but in 2016, it virtually disappeared overnight. Using satellite images showing guano penguins on the Brunt floe, scientists found that in 2016, the Halley Bay colony had collapsed at any time.

Emperors are the largest and heaviest penguin species in the world. As a result, they need sea ice that is strong enough to reproduce and keep their young. They need a stable platform for their offspring. This platform is expected to remain strong from April, when penguins arrive, until December, when their offspring develop its new plumage. If the sea ice breaks too early, the chicks will not have enough plumage to swim and the ice will die.

According to experts, this is what happened in 2016. Thousands of emperor penguin chicks drowned when the pack ice on which they were raised was destroyed because of bad weather. Strong winds weakened the sea ice that was attached to Brunt's platform and since then, it has not been reformed with the same thickness. "The sea ice that's formed since 2016 has not been that strong," said Peter Fretwell, co-author of the study. Although this is not proven in this case, the suspicions are logical from the point of view of global warming. "The storms that occur in October and November will now destroy it earlier, the sea ice that once was stable and reliable is now simply unsustainable." Until now, scientists have not found any convincing climate signals that can explain this phenomenon.