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Adelie penguins protecting chick and egg
Two Adelie penguins protect their chick and egg at Cape Royds, which is the southernmost breeding grounds in the world for Antarctica's iconic seabird.
More about this image
Fewer than 2,000 breeding pairs of Adelie penguins return to the colony at Cape Royds each year during the summer to lay eggs and raise chicks. The colonies at Cape Royds and other nearby locations around the Ross Sea are the subject of a long-term population dynamics study. Further information is available on the PenguinScience website.
The National Science Foundation runs the U.S. Antarctic Program (USAP). In addition to maintaining three U.S. research stations on the continent, USAP supports research projects in an array of scientific disciplines including, for example, aeronomy and astrophysics, biology and medicine, geology and geophysics, glaciology, and ocean and climate systems. Outreach such as the Antarctic Artists and Writers program and education programs are also supported. For more information about USAP, visit the program's website Here. (Date of Image: January 2013)
Credit: Peter Rejcek, NSF
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