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Scientists are trying to get to the bottom of one of nature’s most distinctive walks, a penguin’s waddle.A team from UK’s Royal Veterinary College and the University of Texas have been studying the birds at London Zoo. Our correspondent Rebecca Morale went down there to find out more.
I’m here at London Zoo’s penguin beach. I think we are gonna try and get one to say hello. And they’ve come to London Zoo setting up an experiment here so that they can analyze every tiny movement they make. How did you get them to go across the track? Did they behave?
They did behave. The did like walking across the track, but the actual setting up process was a bit of a problem because the penguins were attracted to really expensive equipment. And they were really keen on destroying it.
So love destroying equipment as we found out. I’m also joined here by James. He’s come all the way from the University of Texas to look at the penguins. Now what are you hoping to find out cuz it turns out thatpenguins havn’t always waddled, have they?
No, it’s first we know the earliest known penguins from the fossil record looks very different. Although we know that they were swimming in the water using their wings and they weren’t flying. They had a lot ofthings about their skeleton that shows us that maybe they are moving differently on land. So we are tryingto understand more about how living penguins work.
They are swimming absolutely beautifully cutting through the water.
I think it has a lot to do with the fact that they are so good at being aquatic birds. The dominant hypothesis is that waddling seems to have a lot to do with their body shape. So we think that that has somethingto do with it.
The penguins here don’t really like doing what they’re told. The experiments have been very very funny. And they are also a bit vicious I found out this morning. I’ve been savaged. I’ve been pecked.
Rebecca Morale with the penguins at London Zoo.
Forensic scientists said they found the tomb of Spain’s most celebrated writer Miguel de Cervantes nearlyfour hundred years after his death.
A team of forensic scientists looking for the remains of one of Spain’s greatest writers Miguel de Cervantes have announced they’ve found his tomb in a small convent in Madrid. The author of Don Quixote was buried in 1616, but his body was lost after it was moved into a new church. In January, researchers found a number of adult bones in Madrid’s Literary Quarter.
It’s March 17th today which means it’s St. Patrick’s Day, a day to celebrate if you are an Irish. But the Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has decided to join in. His special address to mark the day has come under fire both at home and abroad for his tone.
This is the one day of the year when it's good to be green. As you can see I’ve got my green tie on for this occasion.
