Penguin

4 Pages 918 Words

Myopic little men in tuxedos, or highly efficient
land/water animals? Recent research indicates
there's more to penguins than meets the eye.

If you've every wondered what it would be like to
be able to see as clearly under water as you can on
land, just ask the nearest penguin.Most aquatic
animals are short-sighted on land. Most
terrestrial animals (and that includes us) are
far-sighted under water. But researchers have
discovered that penguins can apparently see equally
well in both environments, because of the unique
structure of their eyes.

Penguins have to be able to see well under water
because their diet consists mainly of plankton,
molluscs, crustaceans, and the inevitable fish.
Through a special slowing-down of their heart rate
they're able, like many other diving animals, to
stay submerged long enough to search out and chase
whatever catches their fancy.

On dry land, it's a different story-or has been up
to now. Waddling along on their flat little feet,
eyes fixed intently on the ground, penguins appear
myopic, inefficient and generally out of place.

In fact the reverse is true. During a recent stay
on the Falkland Islands, a Canadian researcher
discovered that penguins are able to recognize
individuals and navigate the rocky terrain on which
they live quite well. Long of body and short of
leg, they probably poke their heads forward as an
aid to balance. And as for looking at the ground,
they're merely-like us-keeping an eye on where
they're going.

The human eye is adapted for aerial vision, which
is why scuba divers-or even you and I in the local
swimming pool-must wear goggles or a face mask to
re-introduce air in front of our eyes in order to
see clearly.

Among vertebrates in general, the bird eye is
frequently described as the most efficient. Its
superior quality, combined with the fact that a
large number of birds-cormorants, pelicans,
seagulls, even ducks...