What is World Penguin Day? Why is it celebrated? Learn about its history and significance

Penguins are the most adorable and attractive creatures on planet earth. In fact, a day is also dedicated to these flightless adorable birds. Taken as an educative initiative, World Penguin Day encourages the masses to learn more about penguins. Learning about penguins can include getting to know their environment and also how important the penguins are to our ecosystem. To know more about this day, here are some facts and history about World Penguin Day.

Image courtesy: @antarctica_adelie_penguin

World Penguin Day is celebrated on April 25th, 2020

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History of World Penguin Day

World Penguin Day takes place during the annual northern migration of Adelie penguins. These penguins are one of the most popular species of penguins and are native to Antarctica. The Adelie penguins migrate to the north individually in order to get better access to food throughout the winter season and then following the summers they again return to the beaches on Antarctica to build their nests. This holiday of the World Penguin Day was created at McMurdo Station, which is an American Research centre on Ross Island. It was observed and noticed by the researchers that the Adelie penguins specifically start migrating on this day, and hence they created this holiday to create social awareness about these creatures.

Image courtesy: @antarctica_adelie_penguin

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As this holiday takes place during the migration of penguins, it celebrates all the penguins in the world and promotes awareness for the endangerment of these adorable birds. It is also observed that these penguins are sensitive to the effects of climate change. And hence, this leads to many of the penguins migrating further to find their food, decreasing the population of these penguins as a result. According to reports of WWF, out of the total 17 species that live in the world, 11 of them have been categorized as endangered or at risk. And hence this holiday of the World Penguin Day is to encourage people to work towards protecting the waters, from human activities such as pollution and the burning of fossil fuels, as doing thus, can result in protecting these species from going extinct.

Image courtesy: @antarctica_adelie_penguin

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How to celebrate World Penguin Day?

• You can celebrate this World Penguin Day by reading about different species of penguins in the world.
• On this day, dress in penguin colors and promote these endangered species.
• If you have time and also interest, take a trip to the local zoo.
• Also, you can donate some funds to a non-profit organization that you trust such as the WWF or the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition.
• There are many things that you can do to learn about these fantastic adorable creatures. Also share a picture on this holiday on your favorite social media websites using the hashtag #WorldPenguinDay and let everyone know what day it is today.

Image courtesy: @antarctica_adelie_penguin

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