‘Is This Thing On?’ Curious Emperor Penguins Pose For Selfies in Antarctica

Epoch Video
3/23/2018
Updated:
3/23/2018

This pair of curious penguins showed off their selfie skills at a rookery in Antarctica, as seen in a video shared on March 8 by the Australian Antarctic Division.

The emperor penguins got up close and personal with an expeditioner’s camera which was left on the ice near Australia’s Mawson research station.

“Australian Antarctic expeditioner, Eddie Gault, left the camera on the ice when visiting the rookery, and it didn’t take long for the naturally curious birds to seize the opportunity for a selfie,” the Australian Antarctic Division wrote on their Facebook post.

According to Australia’s Department of Energy and Environment, the emperor penguin is the largest of the 18 penguin species. The bird can survive the harsh Antarctic winter as well as breed “during the worst weather conditions on earth.”

“Nature has provided emperors with excellent insulation in the form of several layers of scale-like feathers; it takes very strong winds (over 60 knots or about 110 kilometres per hour) to get them ruffled,” the website stated.

Credit: Australian Antarctic Division via Storyful