How did penguins evolve?

Answer 1

All the Christmas cards and movies showing penguins frolicing with polar bears are wrong. Penguins are found only in the Southern Hemisphere and polar bears are found only in the Arctic regions of northern Canada and Europe. Five species breed in Antarctica and others live in Australia, Africa, and South America.

Answer 2

The penguins diverged from other birds except possibly their closest sister group around 65 million years ago, during the Maastrichtian stage of the Cretaceous period. At this time, similar to today, they lived in Australia and Antarctica.

The earliest fossil penguin, Waimanu, was a flightless bird similar to a loon. By now, their wings had evolved for underwater propulsion. Waimanu lived about 62 million years ago, during the Paleogene period, only 3.5 million years after the non avian dinosaurs became extinct.

Answer 3

Penguins with certain traits, such as the ability to swim quickly, survived to reproduce, and pass on these traits to their young. Over time a population changes to reflect the pressures of the environment.

Answer 4

Penguins are believed to have evolved over millions of years from flying seabirds. Adaptations such as flipper-like wings and a streamlined body shape developed to help them swim efficiently underwater in pursuit of prey. These changes allowed penguins to thrive in aquatic environments and lose their ability to fly.