Monogamous Penguin Couple Has Been Together For 16 Years
Posted on: November 19, 2012
- In: Hopes
- Comments Off on Monogamous Penguin Couple Has Been Together For 16 Years
Researchers say a pair of monogamous Magellanic penguins have been together for 16 years, making the lovebirds among the most faithful in the animal kingdom.
According to the Telegraph, the penguins have shared a faithful partnership for almost their “entire breeding life,” despite “spending long periods apart and each of them taking solo trips totaling 200,000 miles.”
For the past 16 years, the penguins have returned to the same nest (and each other) to produce and care for a new clutch of chicks.
As ANI notes, the lovebirds’ enduring connection was discovered by a group of scientists who have been studying penguins on the southern coast of Argentina for the past 30 years.
The researchers, led by Pablo Garcia Borboroglu of the National Research Council of Argentina, said they were surprised to find such a long-lasting penguin partnership.
“The bond they have is incredible, really,” Borboroglu, who is also president of the Global Penguin Society, told the Telegraph.
Previously, penguin couplings were believed to last between five and 10 years, with “many cut short by the unexpected death of birds during migration,” ANI reports.
Wishing You Well 