How Do Penguins Communicate?
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Penguins communicate by many forms. However, many varieties of penguins use individualized vocal calls or vocalization from a young age. Penguins normally do not use these vocalizations or calls when they are swimming or diving. Penguins primarily use these communication calls to communicate when they are nesting on land, in dense groups of penguins, or colonies. These colonies are known for being rather noisy.
In the frigid and barren environment where penguins live, it is often difficult for adult penguins to identify their chicks and their nest in a colony of thousands of birds solely by sight. Adult penguins identify their offspring by their distinctive calls. Penguin chicks only survive by eating partially digested food from their parents. However, the adult penguins will only feed baby penguins they identify as their own by their call.
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Scientists have also researched emperor and king penguins, and they have identified three major types of penguin calls. A "threat call" is the simplest signal and warns members of dangers. Emperor penguins also use the "contact call" to establish their identity over long distances with other colony members. Finally, the complex "display call" is used by penguin partners within a colony to establish their nesting area, mating information and other necessary rituals.
Penguins will often use threat postures, like slicking the feathers near their eye and eyelids, to increase the white areas of their eyes. Large eyes are more threatening to other penguins. Other threat postures found in many species of penguins include ritualized movements like: violent wing flapping, loud calls, stand-off poses, circling, bowing and moving the head up and down. These threat postures are often used when one penguin violates another penguin's territorial space.
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Scientists think that emperor penguins produces a call that has two different "voices" by utilizing both sides of the syrinx, or the vocal organ of the penguin. Like songbirds, the penguins' vocalization sound unique and rich in tone, frequency and beat, but to human ears the penguin "voice" may sound thin. Studies done on Emperor penguins show that they will call and respond to voices that are familiar to them, specifically their mates' voice and the voice of their offspring.
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