By: Arabdho Majumder

THE POLAR REGIONS

ANIMALS IN POLAR REGIONS

ANTARCTICA• Penguins:Emperor Penguins, King Penguins, Adelie Penguins, Chinstrap Penguins, Gentoo Penguins • Whales and Dolphins Hourglass DolphinKiller Whales Sperm Whales Blue Whales• SealsWeddellSouthern FurCrabeaterLeopard• Wandering Albatross• Snow Petrel• Antarctic Skua

GENTOO PENGUINGentoo Penguins have reddish-orange beaks and peach

colored feet. These colors make them stand-out against the icy, rocky landscape they live in.

The Gentoo Penguin is a creature that will dive many times during a day to forage for food. They will usually spend the entire day hunting for food. They tend to remain towards shore, but will occasionally go farther away. When chasing their prey, they can stay underneath the water for up to seven minutes. They are great divers and swim the fastest of any diving bird at 22 miles an hour.

They will feast on animals such as fish or squids that they can find in the waters that surround Antarctica. Just like they have prey, they do have plenty of predators, including Orcas and Sea Lions. While they are in their eggs, they are prey for different types of birds. Humans are also a threat to them because humans will hunt them for oil and skin.

HOURGLASS DOLPHINThe Hourglass Dolphin is a very rare type of dolphin that has

only been classified based on witness reports. There are pictures of the Hourglass Dolphin that you can find online and elsewhere and that gives more evidence as to the fact that it is a dolphin and that it is real.

The reason that it is called the Hourglass Dolphin is because they have a black and white pattern which resembles an hourglass. Their body does not look much like an hourglass however, at least that’s what I think.

There is not much information about it, but scientists do know that it eats small fish, squids, and crustaceans. That seems to be pretty normal as most animals in Antarctica eat those types of things.

The estimated total of how many Hourglass Dolphins there are in the world right now is 140,000.

CRABEATER SEALSurprisingly, the Crabeater Seal’s main prey are not

crabs. They are actually most fond of Antarctic Krill. Crabeaters will typically be found in the pack ice that

surrounds Antarctica. They have been protected somewhat by this from hunting. The areas in which they live are expensive to hunt in and it is hard to even get to the area in which they live in.

An even bigger problem than hunting may occur as time goes on because of their dependency on krill. There are many krill fisheries in Antarctica area and there are also krill fishing nations who want to hunt them more now.

They will typically hunt at night for krill, but they are very shallow dives that can last up to five minutes.

Predator wise they have Orcas who will even eat adult Crabeaters and Leopard Seals who will mainly prey on Crabeater pups.

ARCTIC• Polar Beats

• Arctic Fox

• Arctic Hare

• Caribou

• Walrus

• Snowy Owl

• Narwhal

• Arctic Cod

• Plankton

ARCTIC HAREThe Arctic Hare is an intriguing animal. They live in the

harsh conditions on the North American Tundra, but have adapted well to these surroundings.

They have thick fur which keeps them safe from the cold, and also have small bodies including short ears that appear to have been cut-off. They will also burrow under the ground and huddle together with one-another to preserve the warmth.

Another unique trait is their fur color. They will be snow-white during the winter to camouflage with the white surroundings, and in spring, the fur will change to a blue-gray combination that blends in with the rocks and vegetation that it lives near.

Like other types of hares, Arctic Hares are very fast on foot. They can bound at speeds up to 40 miles an hour which makes them hard to catch.

The survive by eating woody plants and other types of plants such as berries.

NARWHALNarwhals quite simply are like unicorns. They have a long

spear-like tusk growing through their upper-lip. The tusk is actually a tooth, but scientists are not sure as to its purpose. The prominent tusk is reserved for the males, but females may also grow a small tusk.

Narwhals will feed on fish, squid, shrimp, among other aquatic animals.

They will travel in groups of around 15-20, but can be seen gathering up to hundreds and even thousands. The downfall being that they can fall easy prey for hunters and Polar Bears.

A newborn narwhal can weigh from 175 pounds to 220 pounds which is what an adult human would weigh. The newborn narwhal would be 5 feet long which is almost as long as me.

WORK CITED“Gentoo Penguin” National Geographic <http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birds/gentoo-penguin/>

“Hourglass Dolphin Facts” WhaleFacts.org 2013. <http://www.whalefacts.org/hourglass-dolphin-facts/>

“Crabeater Seal” Seal Conservation Society 2011. <http://www.pinnipeds.org/seal-information/species-information-pages/the-phocid-seals/crabeater-seal>

“Arctic Hare” National Geographic <http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/arctic-hare/>

“Narwhal” National Geographic <http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/narwhal/>