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Warm Weather Penguins
, Pingüinos de Clima Cálido

are an extremely unique species to this world. Discovered by anthropologist, Ishma Srmic. They are derived from the Adelie penguin, Pygoscelis Adeliae however, due to the changes of its enviroment and the structure of its body, it no longer lives in cold areas. They lived mostly around the Antarctic Continent, however, they migrated to a warmer area, Santa Cruz Island. They migrate during the colder seasons due to the negative effects climate change brings upon them and the enviroment. Once they migrated, they cross-breed with the Draco Lizard creating this new specie. Unlike most seabirds, the Pingüinos de clima cálido are the least distributed along with the Galapagos Penguins.

Description. These penguins are smaller than average, measuring up to 52cm (20.5 inches) in height and 4.2 to 5 kg (9.3 to 11 lbs) in weight. This comes to their advantage when flying, making them lighter and more nimble. Not only does their exterior get altered, but the interior is also a big factor. It is the third smallest species of penguin after the Galapagos Penguin & Little Penguin. Distinctive characteristics of the Pinguinos de Clima cálido are its wings that give it the ability that no other penguins have, a tail that differs to that of a regular penguin, regularly described as ‘raven like.’ Unlike your typical species of penguins, the warm weather penguin has a mix of white and grey colours. Their fur has gone through many generations of change to help its environmental circumstances. The diets of the warm weather penguin are that of an entomophagy kind compared to an average penguin. Pingüinos de clima cálido has a lifespan of 11-20 years.

'''Habitat and Population Size. '''

The habitat of the Pingüinos de clima cálido is that of a warmer climate. This became evident when the topic of climate change became more relevant around the world. Santa Cruz is an island, which is close to Ecuador’s National Park.It's beaches provide the penguins with a home on land, while the water nearby allows them to swim like they always have. The island gives them space to roam freely. The contrast of having land and sea gives the penguins endless opportunities to adapt to a new environment. Due to the humid climate, the penguins have a technique in which they pant heavily that increases evaporation and cools down the throat and respiratory systems.

The population size of these penguins is quite moderate compared to other species. It rounds up to a total amount of 350,000, however, that number is expected to increase. Considering it is a newer species, the research about this number is not clear. Eggs and chicks are protected from the hot sun by placing them in deep rock crevices.

''' Enviromental Change. ''' The Pingüinos de Clima cálido experienced a drastic shift due to the effects of climate change. As a result of human activity, multiple polar caps, glaciers & icebergs melted causing a majority of sea levels to rise. Penguins would be susceptible to major injuries or worst case death and even complete extinction. There has been a new study where scientists believe that these were the main reasons for not only, the warm weather penguins but generally all animals to escape this life-threatening situation. The Antarctic Continent wasn't providing them with any suitable way of life or comfort. Considering that this is the first species of penguin that are able to fly, they went to migrate for a better chance at life. Scientists estimate that the migration took them around 2-4 weeks to reach their final destination. They used their exceptional swimming abilities to reach Santa Cruz Island, with multiple little islands as rest stops along the way. They found out that Santa Cruz, a tropical rainforest was the most appropriate place to call home as it would prepare them for life in future. Before living on Santa Cruz Island, there was no need for penguins to fly, because their food source was mainly found in water. A mixture of both on land and sea is the perfect combination to help suit their adaptations.

Role of Mutation.

The Pingüinos de Clima cálido experienced a drastic shift due to the effects of climate change. As a result of human activity, multiple polar caps, glaciers & icebergs melted causing a majority of sea levels to rise. Penguins would be susceptible to major injuries or worst case death and even complete extinction. There has been a new study where scientists believe that these were the main reasons for not only, the warm weather penguins but generally all animals to escape this life-threatening situation. The Antarctic Continent wasn't providing them with any suitable way of life or comfort. Considering that this is the first species of penguin that are able to fly, they went to migrate for a better chance at life. Scientists estimate that the migration took them around 2-4 weeks to reach their final destination. They used their exceptional swimming abilities to reach Santa Cruz Island, with multiple little islands as rest stops along the way. They found out that Santa Cruz, a tropical rainforest was the most appropriate place to call home as it would prepare them for life in future. Before living on Santa Cruz Island, there was no need for penguins to fly, because their food source was mainly found in water. A mixture of both on land and sea is the perfect combination to help suit their adaptations.

Adaptations.

Bone Structure.

Analogous can be defined as having different bone structures compared to other species and necessarily have the same function. In the case of The Pinguinos de clima calido, it adapted the analogous bone structure from the from the other species it cross-bred with, features such as wings, neck, feet, tail & spine.

Wings.

When looking at evolution, penguins have always had flippers but that has now since changed with the Pinguinos de Clima calido coming into existence. Their wings are of a ‘raven like’ nature that helps them get to point A to point B. The wing’s bone structure has evolved to be suitable for both flying and swimming. This adaptation is considered a mutagen. Over time many penguins would jump off high points and attempt to fly, but that was not the case. The evolution timeline changed into giving penguins the ability to fly. Charles Darwin’s theory proposed that organisms will change according to their environment. In this case, penguins can fly because their food supply is found in the air, not in the water. Their wings were able to flap over time, due to adapting to a new environment.

Vertebrae.

Originally the Adelie penguins neck and vertebrae would restrict movement as the spinal column of early Antarctic penguins is poorly known. The vertebrae of this species had to change to support their wings and newly found diet. Reason being that their food source was found in the air rather than on land and in the sea, survival of the fittest came into the works by certain penguins. Protruding and extending their neck to reach their food, over the years made the neck and vertebrae a vital characteristic in adapting to their new environment.

Tail.

Considering this is the first species of its kind, a tail is a necessity in helping it fly. Think of it as a training wheel on a bike, these penguins have a completely new ability and have to learn to control this new feature. The tail consists of both cartilage and fur, it expands when penguin flies to help keep its balance. Not only does the tail help them control their balance while flying, but also when they are on land.

Feet.

The feet of the penguin consists of both cartilage and bone. The Pingüinos de Clima cálido had evolved so much so that the feet also had to be accustomed to their change, a distinctive change is less cartilage, more bones. This is due to the fact that the feet have to hold their own body mass walking as well as, lifting themselves up to fly.

Diet.

Originally the diet of this penguin was of a pescetarian nature. This meant it ate seafood such as fish, shrimp or krill. The diet of the Pinguinos de Clima calido is now known as entomophagy, this is the practice of eating insects and tiny bugs. It adapted to this change when migrating to Santa Cruz Island, there was a plentiful amount of food supply on land rather than on sea. As a result of advancement in human technology, pollution has increased to the point where the main resource of food for the penguin was contaminated to the point where it wasn’t healthy to ingest.

Fur & Skin.

The fur of this penguin is considerably lighter in both thickness and colour, grey and white. The colour is lighter because black attracts the most heat. The typical weather in Santa Cruz is humid and is quite warmer to what the penguins are accustomed to. It has a thinner insulating layer of fat which comes to its advantage of tackling this new environment and weather. As its traits are deprived of a lizard the penguin adapted its ability to stand the heat better.

Vision.

The vision of a penguin is of exceptional sight. They have relatively large eyes which comes in hand as they have excellent vision. This is vital because a good eyesight means they can avoid collisions while in flight. It can also help with capturing fast-moving or camouflaged prey. The Pinguinos de Clima calido have eyes on the side of their head, this gives them a more peripheral vision to see their predators. Typically penguins have sensitive eyes, especially in certain colours like blue and violet. Since the Santa Cruz penguins have better eyes, they are no longer sensitive to those colours. As all penguins do, a third eyelid is a necessity when it comes to swimming as it acts as a protective barrier between the two. The warm weather penguin cools off by floating or swimming slowly at the beach. When flying the main eyelid, is another protective barrier in avoiding certain dust and minuscule objects.