Penguin catastrophe leads to demands for protection in East Antarctica

After failure of Adélie penguins to breed, WWF calls for measures to ensure they do not face competition from fishing fleets for food Only two Adélie penguin chicks from a colony of more than 18,000 breeding pairs have survived the Antarctic summer due to unusually extensive sea ice, prompting environmental campaigners to call for a new marine protected area.The penguins in Terre Adélie in East Antarctica, which only reproduce on ice-free land, suffered a catastrophic breeding season after unseasonably large sea ice growth forced parents to travel further for food, causing their chicks to starve. Continue reading...