Jokes like that abound on Penguin Awareness Day (January 25th) and World Penguin
Day (April 25th). On these days, penguin lovers are encouraged to dress in black and
white, waddle when you can (when you won’t look ridiculous — like at work), eat fish
when you can, and tell penguin jokes. And, for Penguin Awareness Day, there are even
greeting cards.
Eric Bennett of New York, owner of The Penguin Place (www.penguin-place.com), said
that both days started out in the same fun vein. However, with global warming, Penguin
Aware-ness Day has taken on serious overtones, and can be more poignant and
profound.
World Penguin Day is still a “fun” event. There are many ideas as to the origin of the date.
Some scientists noted that all Adelie penguins (in the Antarctic) start their molting
season on the same day, April 25th. However, some websites (such as holidayinsights.
com/other/penguinawareness.htm) say that all penguins start migrating on the same
day, April 25th.
Bennett said that most penguin lovers celebrate one of the holidays. He observes
Penguin Awareness Day. Though he’ll also tell you that, “for some people, every day is
Penguin Awareness Day.”
With World Penguin Day coming up, I interviewed Bennett about how he got involved with
penguins, his penguin item store, and fun penguin facts. (Also, he taught me the opening
joke to which I added my own touch.)
Bennett’s introduction to penguins started as a teenager. His first girlfriend liked
penguins and so he gave her penguin related gifts. She reciprocated. Then his parents,
seeing his growing collection, started to give him penguin items, too. Soon he was
hooked.
In 1984, he was out of college, a liberal arts major, looking for a job. While traveling up in
Boston, he saw stores that focused on pigs and unicorns. Back in New York, he was
thinking about the shops around the South Street Seaport and a thought came to him:
how about a penguin store? That would be a great idea! There was nothing like it there.
On a whim, he applied for a store and was quickly accepted. His store opened in 1985.
Like many operations, things have changed and the store is no longer a physical location
but found online as “The Penguin Place.” Also, for a while, Bennett put out a non-profit
penguin-centered publication, The Penguin Post. However, it was a victim of its own
success and became too much to handle as a print publication. Bennett is revamping
his website and said current issues of the Penguin Post should come back online in the
next six months. Presently, there are back issue articles online at the site
Although Bennett knew a bit about Penguin collectibles, stuffed items and similar items
when he started his business, he didn’t know that much about the real birds. But, his
penguin-loving customers did. So, he needed to learn. His customers were passionate
about penguins and he learned from their stories. He met a people from a variety of
fields including nature photographers and scientists. He sold nature books on penguins
and read those, too.
“I learned just by absorbing (the knowledge),” Bennett said.
So, what did he learn? He shared some interesting Penguin facts with me: “Out of the 17
Penguin species, only two make their home in the Antarctic,” he said. Those are the
Emperor and Adelie penguins. The latter is named for the wife of its discoverer, whose
name was Adeline. The Chinstrap, Gentoo, and King species are found in the sub-
Antarctic.
So, where do you find the rest of the penguins? Africa (off of Cape Town), Australia, New
Zealand (in the rain forest), the Galapagos Islands, and South America (all the way to
Peru). Yes, there are warm weather penguins. However, they tend to stay in the shade or
in the water. These are smaller than the cold weather penguins.
Cold weather penguins are bigger because they are mostly blubber. In this way, they can
go without food and still be ok. They feed off themselves. They are normally 40 to 50
inches tall, weigh 65 to 85 pounds, and can lose up to 25% of their body fat. Their wings
are not for flying, but for insulation from the cold. And, “Penguins are excellent
swimmers,” said Bennett. “They swim like dolphins, in and out of the water.” The
Emperor Penguins can hold their breath under water for up to 18 minutes.
Baby Penguins are called chicks. In the colder climates, species like the Emperor
Penguin raise only one chick at a time. Even if the mother penguin has two eggs, only
one will be raised. After she has her egg, the mother goes off to feed herself for a couple
of months; some of what she eats will be passed on to her baby. Meanwhile, the daddy
penguin watches the egg, balancing it on his feet. If the egg falls off for more than a few
minutes it will freeze. (Yes, daddy penguins become “Mr. Moms” and stay home for a
while, watching their little eggs.) By the time mama returns, the egg is ready to hatch.
Also, Bennett shared that while penguins are cute, you can smell them long before you
see them.
Besides learning about penguins, penguin lovers like Bennett like to collect everything
penguin. The Penguin Place has things for the bedroom, kitchen, bathroom, and for
young and old alike.
While there are the expected items like calendars, key rings, mugs and t-shirts (including
ones with the classic cartoon character Chilly Willy), there are more unusual things.
There’s a penguin menorah, penguin wallpaper border, tiffany penguin lamp, penguin
cookie cutters, penguin ice cream scoop, penguin ice cube molds and more.
When asked what might be the most unique penguin he’s ever had, Bennett replied, “a
penguin plunger and toilet bowl cleaner.”
Yes, for some World Penguin Day is every day of the year. But for those who want to test
the waters and try it, don’t forget on April 25th to wear something black and white and
“waddle when you can.”
First Published April 2007 in The Animal Companion.
Day (April 25th). On these days, penguin lovers are encouraged to dress in black and
white, waddle when you can (when you won’t look ridiculous — like at work), eat fish
when you can, and tell penguin jokes. And, for Penguin Awareness Day, there are even
greeting cards.
Eric Bennett of New York, owner of The Penguin Place (www.penguin-place.com), said
that both days started out in the same fun vein. However, with global warming, Penguin
Aware-ness Day has taken on serious overtones, and can be more poignant and
profound.
World Penguin Day is still a “fun” event. There are many ideas as to the origin of the date.
Some scientists noted that all Adelie penguins (in the Antarctic) start their molting
season on the same day, April 25th. However, some websites (such as holidayinsights.
com/other/penguinawareness.htm) say that all penguins start migrating on the same
day, April 25th.
Bennett said that most penguin lovers celebrate one of the holidays. He observes
Penguin Awareness Day. Though he’ll also tell you that, “for some people, every day is
Penguin Awareness Day.”
With World Penguin Day coming up, I interviewed Bennett about how he got involved with
penguins, his penguin item store, and fun penguin facts. (Also, he taught me the opening
joke to which I added my own touch.)
Bennett’s introduction to penguins started as a teenager. His first girlfriend liked
penguins and so he gave her penguin related gifts. She reciprocated. Then his parents,
seeing his growing collection, started to give him penguin items, too. Soon he was
hooked.
In 1984, he was out of college, a liberal arts major, looking for a job. While traveling up in
Boston, he saw stores that focused on pigs and unicorns. Back in New York, he was
thinking about the shops around the South Street Seaport and a thought came to him:
how about a penguin store? That would be a great idea! There was nothing like it there.
On a whim, he applied for a store and was quickly accepted. His store opened in 1985.
Like many operations, things have changed and the store is no longer a physical location
but found online as “The Penguin Place.” Also, for a while, Bennett put out a non-profit
penguin-centered publication, The Penguin Post. However, it was a victim of its own
success and became too much to handle as a print publication. Bennett is revamping
his website and said current issues of the Penguin Post should come back online in the
next six months. Presently, there are back issue articles online at the site
Although Bennett knew a bit about Penguin collectibles, stuffed items and similar items
when he started his business, he didn’t know that much about the real birds. But, his
penguin-loving customers did. So, he needed to learn. His customers were passionate
about penguins and he learned from their stories. He met a people from a variety of
fields including nature photographers and scientists. He sold nature books on penguins
and read those, too.
“I learned just by absorbing (the knowledge),” Bennett said.
So, what did he learn? He shared some interesting Penguin facts with me: “Out of the 17
Penguin species, only two make their home in the Antarctic,” he said. Those are the
Emperor and Adelie penguins. The latter is named for the wife of its discoverer, whose
name was Adeline. The Chinstrap, Gentoo, and King species are found in the sub-
Antarctic.
So, where do you find the rest of the penguins? Africa (off of Cape Town), Australia, New
Zealand (in the rain forest), the Galapagos Islands, and South America (all the way to
Peru). Yes, there are warm weather penguins. However, they tend to stay in the shade or
in the water. These are smaller than the cold weather penguins.
Cold weather penguins are bigger because they are mostly blubber. In this way, they can
go without food and still be ok. They feed off themselves. They are normally 40 to 50
inches tall, weigh 65 to 85 pounds, and can lose up to 25% of their body fat. Their wings
are not for flying, but for insulation from the cold. And, “Penguins are excellent
swimmers,” said Bennett. “They swim like dolphins, in and out of the water.” The
Emperor Penguins can hold their breath under water for up to 18 minutes.
Baby Penguins are called chicks. In the colder climates, species like the Emperor
Penguin raise only one chick at a time. Even if the mother penguin has two eggs, only
one will be raised. After she has her egg, the mother goes off to feed herself for a couple
of months; some of what she eats will be passed on to her baby. Meanwhile, the daddy
penguin watches the egg, balancing it on his feet. If the egg falls off for more than a few
minutes it will freeze. (Yes, daddy penguins become “Mr. Moms” and stay home for a
while, watching their little eggs.) By the time mama returns, the egg is ready to hatch.
Also, Bennett shared that while penguins are cute, you can smell them long before you
see them.
Besides learning about penguins, penguin lovers like Bennett like to collect everything
penguin. The Penguin Place has things for the bedroom, kitchen, bathroom, and for
young and old alike.
While there are the expected items like calendars, key rings, mugs and t-shirts (including
ones with the classic cartoon character Chilly Willy), there are more unusual things.
There’s a penguin menorah, penguin wallpaper border, tiffany penguin lamp, penguin
cookie cutters, penguin ice cream scoop, penguin ice cube molds and more.
When asked what might be the most unique penguin he’s ever had, Bennett replied, “a
penguin plunger and toilet bowl cleaner.”
Yes, for some World Penguin Day is every day of the year. But for those who want to test
the waters and try it, don’t forget on April 25th to wear something black and white and
“waddle when you can.”
First Published April 2007 in The Animal Companion.
| Hooray for World Penguin Day! |
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By ELSIE WALKER
A man is driving down the highway with 12 penguins sitting in the
back of his car. A cop sees this and pulls him over. “What’s wrong,
officer?” asked the man. “Those penguins in the backseat of your
car, I want you to take them to the zoo immediately,” said the cop.
“Yes sir, officer, “ said the obedient driver.
The next week, the cop noticed the same car going down the road
and again 12 penguins riding along in the back seat. Again, the cop
pulls the car over. Looking into the back seat, the officer says to the
driver, “Are these the same penguins as last week? I thought I told
you to take them to the zoo!”
“I did,” said the driver. “We had a great time and so this week we’re
going to see Happy Feet!”
A man is driving down the highway with 12 penguins sitting in the
back of his car. A cop sees this and pulls him over. “What’s wrong,
officer?” asked the man. “Those penguins in the backseat of your
car, I want you to take them to the zoo immediately,” said the cop.
“Yes sir, officer, “ said the obedient driver.
The next week, the cop noticed the same car going down the road
and again 12 penguins riding along in the back seat. Again, the cop
pulls the car over. Looking into the back seat, the officer says to the
driver, “Are these the same penguins as last week? I thought I told
you to take them to the zoo!”
“I did,” said the driver. “We had a great time and so this week we’re
going to see Happy Feet!”