The Humboldt penguin, S. Humboldti , and the Cape penguin, S. Demersus , reside in subtropical regions, and eight other species do so in different temperate zones of the planet. The remaining seven are polar, the case of the emperor penguin, Aptenodytes forsteri , the largest that exists today, 1.1 meters high and weighing a maximum of fifty kilos.
However, fossils of these sphenisciform birds have been found in other areas, from New Zealand to Peru. The oldest dates from about sixty million years ago , but the true ancestors of modern animals are no more than ten million. Some, yes, were very large. Palaeeudyptes klekowskii , which lived in Antarctica 37 million years ago, measured two meters from the tip of its legs to the tip of its beak. His weight was around 115 kg. Another prehistoric species, the Icadyptes Salasi , measured 1.5 meters.
The evolution of penguins has turned scientists upside down for decades. Although it is believed that they were once able to fly, no ancestor with this ability has yet been found. On the other hand, other changes have been observed in the remains found to date. A team of American researchers observed in a skeleton from 36 million years ago that its plumage had different colors than today.
The wings of Inkayacu paracasensis were gray and reddish-brown. Not having as much melanin, they were less rigid, suggesting that they were not adapted to aquatic life. Also, those shades don’t offer the same level of camouflage underwater. The shape of its body has also been modified until it is completely spindle-shaped, with the legs at the back, unlike the rest of aerial birds, which need them in the middle of the trunk to propel themselves. And the bones have become more and more compacted until they lose the air chambers that characterize those of their flying relatives.
