Stars of snow business
PENGUINS: MEET THE FAMILY BBC1, 6.30pm
AAH, penguins. We know about the singing and dancing cartoon film stars, Pingu, the baddie from Batman, and even the chocolate biscuits, but it turns out there’s a whole load of these guys that we might not have encountered before.
And in this stunning celebration of one of the most iconic and beloved creatures on Earth, voiced by Liz Bonnin, we will meet the whole lot – which means all 18 species.
These black and white birds have managed to adapt to the most hostile and extreme environments, and are some of the most devoted parents you’ll see in the animal kingdom.
Some we’re familiar with, like the Emperor penguins, who live in the Antarctic in huge colonies and travel for miles to feed and raise their super-cute fluffy chicks. But some are less well-known and are completely surprising, like Snares penguins who live in the forests of New Zealand.
It turns out that’s where penguins first evolved, more than 60 million years ago, and New Zealand actually has more species of penguin than anywhere else on the planet.
Then there are the Galapagos penguins, who survive in the sweltering heat of the equator, while
African penguins have even managed to assimilate to life alongside humans, chilling out on the beaches near Cape Town and then waddling back through residential neighbourhoods, where they’ve set up camp in somebody’s back yard – once they’ve negotiated the dangers of crossing busy roads during the rush hour, that is.
This is entertaining, informative and seriously adorable.