Rise in population of Adelie penguins

Researchers have reported a rise in the population of Adelie penguins. In the last 14,000 years, a rise of 135-fold has been witnessed in population of Adelie penguins. Main reason behind the rise is shrinking glaciers, which is leading to the birth of more Adelie penguins in the East Antarctica region.

Seeing the rise, the researchers have affirmed that current environmental conditions are favoring Adelie penguins. Study’s lead researcher Jane Younger from University of Tasmania in Australia, said that as per their research, shrinking glaciers have acted as a main driver of change in population over so many years for this species.

Younger said, “We need to consider millennial-scale trends alongside contemporary data to forecast species’ abundance and distribution changes under future climate change scenarios”.

Along with this, the researchers have also shared that there are some areas in Antarctica, where the population of Adelie penguins is declining. The researchers in the study have studied the DNA of these penguins so they could know about the population trends in the last 22,000 years.

Now, Adelie penguins nest on ice-free area along the Antarctic coastline and has been benefiting from de-glaciation. Younger said that when the impact of climate change is to be considered, it become important to look at the long-term impact as well as the immediate effects.

Though the population is expanding of Adelie penguin, it is also important to have enough food supplies to meet the demand.