New Zealand also has penguins. But there is no (map) love for NZ.
this post was submitted on 12 Aug 2025
548 points (98.9% liked)
Science Memes
16297 readers
3583 users here now
Welcome to c/science_memes @ Mander.xyz!
A place for majestic STEMLORD peacocking, as well as memes about the realities of working in a lab.
Rules
- Don't throw mud. Behave like an intellectual and remember the human.
- Keep it rooted (on topic).
- No spam.
- Infographics welcome, get schooled.
This is a science community. We use the Dawkins definition of meme.
Research Committee
Other Mander Communities
Science and Research
Biology and Life Sciences
- !abiogenesis@mander.xyz
- !animal-behavior@mander.xyz
- !anthropology@mander.xyz
- !arachnology@mander.xyz
- !balconygardening@slrpnk.net
- !biodiversity@mander.xyz
- !biology@mander.xyz
- !biophysics@mander.xyz
- !botany@mander.xyz
- !ecology@mander.xyz
- !entomology@mander.xyz
- !fermentation@mander.xyz
- !herpetology@mander.xyz
- !houseplants@mander.xyz
- !medicine@mander.xyz
- !microscopy@mander.xyz
- !mycology@mander.xyz
- !nudibranchs@mander.xyz
- !nutrition@mander.xyz
- !palaeoecology@mander.xyz
- !palaeontology@mander.xyz
- !photosynthesis@mander.xyz
- !plantid@mander.xyz
- !plants@mander.xyz
- !reptiles and amphibians@mander.xyz
Physical Sciences
- !astronomy@mander.xyz
- !chemistry@mander.xyz
- !earthscience@mander.xyz
- !geography@mander.xyz
- !geospatial@mander.xyz
- !nuclear@mander.xyz
- !physics@mander.xyz
- !quantum-computing@mander.xyz
- !spectroscopy@mander.xyz
Humanities and Social Sciences
Practical and Applied Sciences
- !exercise-and sports-science@mander.xyz
- !gardening@mander.xyz
- !self sufficiency@mander.xyz
- !soilscience@slrpnk.net
- !terrariums@mander.xyz
- !timelapse@mander.xyz
Memes
Miscellaneous
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
What's a New Zealand?
Zealand died unexpectedly and we had to rush out and replace it quickly before the kids got home from school. Don't tell them.
Colonial name for Aotearoa
That's the right answer
NZ penguins are almost certainly counted on the number over Australia.
The fact that each entire continent gets a single number is misleading... But then, that's why we are here.
Schrödinger's country.
What about the ones in the zoo?
Statistically insignificant.
*to captive penguin*
he didn't mean that buddy
Which is great news. There are species where births in zoos are in fact statistically significant =/
The 0.6% being born in Africa:
DYK there used to be an arctic penguin
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_auk
Then when they got to the antarctic, they said hey they're here too! That's how the penguin got its name. But they weren't related.
Whenever I see an extinct animal from the past few hundred years I get tremendously sad that we’ll never have the opportunity to listen to a David Attenborough documentary about them.
I have great news for you, There’s a documentary series narrated by David Attenbrough called prehistoric planet. And is does exactly this. The next season will be on the most recent period (ie. ice age), so possible we will see these great auks that look like penguins.
Apparently you could spot these bois chilling in Southern Spain or Florida.
how many decimal places are needed to include penguins in zoos?
Ian Brown did a song “There Are No Lions In England”, even though he grew up an hour’s drive from Knowsley Safari Park and Chester Zoo.
While that may be true we all know there are no lions in Sweden, he's been dead for awhile now. You can choose if I'm talking about Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden or that poor beast that was taxidermied.
And this is how I learn that there are no Arctic penguins.
Arctic actually means land without penguins, and Antarctic means land with penguins.
It’s actually bears. The north is named by the Greeks after the Ursa Major constellation in the north literally “big bear”. So it’s the bear place. While the south is the opposite of the bears.
Happy coincidence it ended up matching polar bear ranges.
You're absolutely correct, I was riffing on the commonly mentioned fact you said. Similar to the "mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell." meme people mention often.
its the other way round for bears i think
Bear without penguins and bear with penguins? I'm no bearologist but I don't think that's right.
But the bear referenced there is not the animal but the constellation...
Arctic = towards the bear, so north
Antarctic = the opposite (=ant[i]) direction
So for bears Arctic means land with penguins
There aren't many bears on Lemmy, though, so we don't need to use their terminology.
Doesn't 'ant' mean not and 'arc' is without? So it's really closer to 'without penguins' and 'not without penguins'
"Arktos" is greek for bear.
The arctis is the region towards the bear, meaning the constellation so north... while the antarctis is the opposite direction (ant(i) = opposite).
grok is this true
be the invasive species you want to see in the world?
Serious question: what sort of crimes do I have to commit to be reincarnated as a penguin in Australia but not Antarctica?
Hey. The penguins i’ve seen in Melbourne look quite happy.
They even won a photo award ;)
How about the Falklands?
Ok, but what's the chance of being hatched on each continent? I believe that it's a statistical insignificant amount penguins being born anyway
I wonder what would happen if we transplanted some penguins from Antarctica to the arctic. Would they survive?
Maybe some of the more endangered ones could live and thrive up there, and then become a second food source for the polar bears so they don't starve now that there isn't as much ice to hunt seals on.
It's not like there much of an ecosystem up there that an invasive species can fuck up like the toads down in Australia.
Assuming they survived would probably fuck with fish populations and thereby the predators of fish and the predators of predators of fish.
I have never even had a chance to win the birth lottery :(
I like these odds. Being a penguin sounds like generalized anxiety with an extra layer of flubber.
"I'd rather be happy than right any day"
Surely this isn’t taking into consideration insect populations, right? I’m pretty damn sure I’ll be reincarnated as an ant.
Edit: ah, I see I misinterpreted the graph. Never mind and carry on.
i asked the internet and antarctica doesn't have ants, it has midges. i'm not sure whether that's better or worse. right now... better.
sideeyes South America
South American here. Can confirm 👍