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The Emperor Penguin Height: 3 1/2 feet Weight: 80-90 lbs Range: Antarctic continent Breeding Season: begins in March Nesting: 1 egg incubated by male 64-67 days. Fledgling stage: 4-5 months

The Emperor penguin stands over 3 1/2 feet tall and averages 80-90 lbs. They are the longest lived of the penguins, with a life span of up to 50 years (as opposed to the average life span of 10 years for the other species). Emperor penguins have yellow patches around their ears and at their throat, and a long narrow bill.

The Emperor is the only animal (not counting research scientists) that spends winter on the Antarctic continent. They (the penguins, not the scientists) breed and raise their young during the harshest season, anywhere on Earth. At the height of the Antarctic winter, it is dark 24 hours a day and blizzards rage with temperature of -80 degrees and winds of 120 mph.

The Emperor penguins, having traveled up to a 100 miles over the ice to get there, begin arriving at the breeding grounds in March (autumn in Antarctica). They remain at the rookery ( or breeding grounds) without returning to the sea to eat, throughout the courtship and mating.

In mid May, the female lays one egg, which the male immediately takes onto his feet and tucks up into his brood pouch. The female heads for the open sea to feed. She won't return for two months (when the egg is ready to hatch). The male continues to fast and incubate his egg. The emperor males huddle together in large groups for warmth.

The eggs hatch in mid July (right about the time the females return). This is also the middle of the Antarctic winter -- when the weather is at it's worst. By the time the females arrive to take over, the males have been without food for 3-4 months, and have lost 50% of their body weight. The female takes the chick onto her feet and covers it with her brood pouch. (In case you were wondering, the brood pouch is a fold or flap of skin at the belly, with no (or hardly any) feathers on it, that the parent squats down and sort of wraps around the egg or chick. This lets the heat from the parent's body warm the egg or chick.)

The male sets out on the long trek to the sea, to feed for about three weeks. Meanwhile, mom feeds the chick when it cries, with partially digested food that she keeps in her crop. When dad returns, the parents take turns feeding in the ocean and taking care of the chick.

The chick, or fledgling stage (from hatching, to the first molt, when the chick gets it's adult feathers and is ready to take care of themselves) in Emperor penguins lasts 4-5 months. Because of the long distance to open water, and the time it takes to find food, the parents only bring 14 (or so) meals to the chick, over the 5 month period. Each meal is huge, about 30% of the chicks body weight.

By January the Antarctic summer is here. The winter ice has broken up and open water is nearby (instead of 100's of miles away). The weather is at it's mildest and food is abundant. It is the best possible time for the young Emperor penguins to start life on their own.

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The King Penguin Height: 3 feet Weight: 35-45 lbs Range: the islands surrounding the Antarctic continent Breeding Season: begins in October Nesting: 1 egg incubated by both parents 54-56 days. Fledgling stage: 13 months

Physically the King penguin resembles the Emperor in many ways. They are slightly smaller, standing about 3 feet tall. Because they don't face the extremes in weather, and prolonged fasting, that the Emperor does; the King penguin is much slimmer, weighing in at half the Emperor's weight (about 45 lbs). The colorful patches around the ears and throat are darker and more "orangish" than the Emperor's.

The King penguins inhabit the sub-Antarctic islands and breed in rookeries along the shore. They begin courtship and mating in October. {The King penguin has the longest fledgling (or chick) stage of all the penguins. Because of this long fledgling stage (13 months) they only breed twice in a 3-year period.} In November the female lays one egg. Like the Emperor penguin, the King penguins do not build nests and the egg is incubated on the parent's feet. However (since open water -- and therefore food -- is nearby) both King penguin parents take turns incubating the egg, which hatches in about 56 days. After the egg hatches, both parents take turns caring for the chick and feeding in the sea.

The down on the King penguin chick is very thick and long, which is why they are sometimes called "wooly penguins". During the winter when food is scarce the chicks are fed irregularly (once every 3 or 4 weeks). The chicks survive on their stored fat between feedings, and may lose up to 50% of their body weight. Many of the weaker chicks do not survive the winter.