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Hundreds of Dead Baby Penguins Wash Up on Rio's Beaches

treehugger.com — It is difficult to imagine what must have been going through the heads of Rio de Janeiro beachgoers in recent months as they have seen hundreds of baby penguins wash up onshore dead. At last count, more than 400 penguins, swept from the shores of Patagonia and Antarctica, have been found dead on Rio de Janeiro's beaches, reports the AP.

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  • ricoboy24, on 07/20/2008, -25/+16I think its a combination of both polution, and climate change.
    • Stevanoski, on 07/21/2008, -19/+5You would be wrong.
      • expo1001, on 07/21/2008, -2/+10How do you know?
      • GiggleStick, on 07/21/2008, -7/+4@expo1001

        Because no matter what you think or conclude, you can ALWAYS be wrong. Wait, am I right about that?
      • stagmire, on 07/21/2008, -4/+2You're right. It's probably just climate change.
    • Assad, on 07/21/2008, -6/+5Don't think it's pollution related. They are washing up in Cabo Frio , Buzios and other cities in Rio de Janeiro state ( Not the city ), these beaches have no pollution problems whatsoever. They usually die because of the heat.
      • staticneuron, on 07/21/2008, -3/+2I don't think the babies died on the beach so you're not really proving his point wrong.
    • Klisk, on 07/21/2008, -4/+4Obviously this is the Cloverfield monster.
    • patbon, on 07/21/2008, -2/+1good for you
  • madetosink, on 07/20/2008, -7/+88What's odd is that nothing ate them while they were floating to Rio...

    That's a free meal for any predator...so why weren't they eaten before they got there?
    • notoneofus, on 07/21/2008, -0/+89I think it's more like a free meal for any scavenger, isn't it? Predators usually like live meals.
    • EddietheHated, on 07/21/2008, -18/+9How many dead penguins does it take to paint a beach...

      [/remorse for some pretty neat animals dying]

    • Jauladeoro, on 08/27/2008, -5/+27Maybe they contracted some kind of sickness and other animals that would usually eat them could sense it so avoided eating them.
    • stklaw, on 07/21/2008, -2/+22Maybe they were much more penguins being eaten on their way to the beach and those hundreds of penguins were whats left of them.
    • nothin2g, on 07/21/2008, -5/+37Predator only eat Aliens.
    • bsmang, on 07/21/2008, -1/+6In addition to notoneofus's comment, maybe more started the trip than finished it?
    • seanobii, on 07/21/2008, -1/+16I read an article, from discovery.ca, on how rains in antarica are making baby penguins freeze to death because they are soked during the day from the rain then at night temperatures go below freezing. This could have something to do with it perhaps. The reason why this doesnt affect the older penguins is because they develop feathers that resist being saturated with water as they age.
      • seanobii, on 07/21/2008, -0/+9sorry the article was from nationalgeographic.com, my bad
    • DukeMojo, on 07/21/2008, -0/+4Because born predators are smart enough to know that anything freely floating around that hasn't been eaten yet, shouldn't be eaten.
    • bylarke, on 07/21/2008, -2/+1I think Batman is tryint to get an early start on his next villan...Wait no it can't be batman he doesn't kill. Damn but the thought was good. Perhapse they were the ones who resisted to be in the fight against batman?
    • slayernine, on 07/21/2008, -0/+1Or perhaps the local scavengers see them and are like wtf is this ***** doing in my end of town?
  • M7levels, on 07/20/2008, -14/+3Wow.. in Rio amazing
  • vault, on 07/20/2008, -14/+25penguins are edible aren't they?
    • stupidStan, on 07/21/2008, -5/+24especially in burrito form
    • snoop396, on 07/21/2008, -9/+4mmmm dead baby
    • cJw314, on 07/21/2008, -9/+3Which is easier to unload : a truckload of bowling balls or a truckload of dead penguins?
      • olddirtycr, on 07/21/2008, -4/+8Bowling balls would most likely roll out of the truck and hit your foot and be hard to handle so... penguins of course. How retarded are you that you'd have to ask that question?
      • cJw314, on 07/21/2008, -4/+5Penguins - you can use a pitchfork.

        -.-
    • quomen, on 07/21/2008, -7/+5I eat children.
  • OutsideSupply, on 07/21/2008, -18/+14Could it be Bird flu?
  • gabeN, on 07/21/2008, -14/+1London zookeeper wanted for questioning: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yslnNqv8Njg
  • DeviantDragon, on 07/21/2008, -15/+9Anybody else reminded of the movie "Surf's Up"?
  • KeyLimePie, on 07/21/2008, -1/+91I'd digg this but the REAL article is here: http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/07/18/dead-baby ...
    • 471776, on 07/21/2008, -1/+3Thanks, this article sucks.

      "If true, this is especially worrisome as it indicates that Rio de Janeiro and other regions can expect to see an increase in such events over the coming years."

      Yes, and it's also worrisome because the species could become extinct. Some people have a ***** up idea of what's important.
    • HypocriteDigg, on 07/21/2008, -0/+2That's funny, because it's an AP story! Not a discovery story. It's on dozens of news websites.
  • Wizardtb, on 07/21/2008, -13/+11The baby penguin killer strikes again.
  • klitzbtc, on 07/21/2008, -1/+192just in case a monday morning couldn't get any worse, dead baby penguins.
    • bengringo, on 07/21/2008, -2/+16Thank you for making me feel so horrible for laughing.
    • pritchypritch, on 07/21/2008, -5/+1What are your thoughts on lasagna?
    • elislider, on 07/21/2008, -1/+1i actually laughed because the title had "dead baby". takes me back to high school
  • ltkerr0r, on 07/21/2008, -11/+65Windows did it
  • leladax, on 07/21/2008, -13/+36Did they drop any loot?
    • bonds, on 07/21/2008, -2/+8Too low of an mlvl to drop anything good.
  • Alequisandro, on 07/21/2008, -2/+12This happens every year because the sea currents.
    Many pups are rescued, fed until they are strong again and then are returned to Antarctica and Patagonia. But the number of pups dragged this year seems larger than in previous.
    • positron, on 07/21/2008, -1/+10Maybe if the weak ones that got swept away weren't rescued and returned to the gene pool there wouldn't be more than usual this year.

      /nature is a cruel mistress
  • iamtenninjas, on 07/21/2008, -5/+75Jesus Christ, did the ocean kick some puppies while it was at it, too?
    • Millsee, on 07/21/2008, -6/+1@iamtenninjas..... made me chuckle...hahah! :D

      It clubbed a few seals, then made a few purses from mink's ears

    • haentz, on 07/21/2008, -0/+6No, it threw them down a mountain...
    • jabberwolf, on 07/21/2008, -0/+1Dont go there,

      Dead puppies arent much fun!
    • s0l0s0ul, on 07/21/2008, -1/+0are you actually asking Jesus Christ?
  • liuite, on 07/21/2008, -3/+31WHY ARE YOU TAKING OUR FISH!
  • PDF84, on 07/21/2008, -12/+5Mmmm Penguin Soup.
  • yngtimmy, on 07/21/2008, -10/+3Haliburton
  • happytedium, on 07/21/2008, -7/+181Linux viral marketing gone wrong. :x
    • iJump, on 07/21/2008, -0/+2 Kernel panics up the wazoo!
    • feliphe, on 07/21/2008, -6/+1There is a lot of Gay population in Rio XD
    • d3dm, on 07/21/2008, -3/+1I swear, as God as my witness, I had no idea that penguins could not fly.
    • vbullinger, on 07/21/2008, -0/+1Damn, I was going to make a horrible Linux joke and you beat me to it.
    • Olivaise, on 07/21/2008, -1/+1Now I feel terrible for laughing.
  • RashandCurious, on 07/21/2008, -11/+5dugg for the title alone
  • 4rp4n3t, on 07/21/2008, -16/+11Yes, but, will it blend?
  • frankengeek, on 07/21/2008, -18/+12I'm waiting to hear - It's George Bush's fault.
    • daehnomel, on 07/21/2008, -7/+4No, it's your fault for voting him in, ass-clown!

      Actaully wait, he was never really "voted" in was he? but you're still an ass-clown.
    • PDF84, on 07/21/2008, -3/+4G W FTW!!
  • omenmedia, on 07/21/2008, -7/+5Anyone else think of Mumble from Happy Feet when he swam all the way from Antartica to ask "why are you taking our fish?" He made it though, poor little guys. :(
  • CoMpUtErITGuY, on 07/21/2008, -6/+10Her name is Rio and she dances on the sand
    Just like that river twisting through a dusty land
    And when she shines she really shows you all she can
    Oh Rio, Rio dance across the Rio Grande
    • positron, on 07/21/2008, -5/+3The Rio Grande is in Mexico/US, geotard.
      • gn0stik, on 07/21/2008, -1/+7geotard... I like that.

        But it was a reference to an 80's duran duran song for no other reason than it had the word Rio in it. Audiotard.
  • VitriolAndAngst, on 07/21/2008, -7/+5"Thiago Muniz, a veterinarian at the Niteroi Zoo, said he believed overfishing has forced the penguins to swim further from shore to find fish to eat "and that leaves them more vulnerable to getting caught up in the strong ocean currents."
    Niteroi, the state's biggest zoo, already has already received about 100 penguins for treatment this year and many are drenched in petroleum, Muniz said. The Campos oil field that supplies most of Brazil's oil lies offshore.
    Muniz said he hadn't seen penguins suffering from the effects of other pollutants, but he pointed out that already dead penguins aren't brought in for treatment.
    Pimenta suggested pollution is to blame
    "
    My guess would be that it is overfishing causing them to wander, and global warming keeping them from getting back. Their traditional breeding grounds may be floating away. Obviously, they are making it back to some ice flow, but it is going with the currents away from Antarctica -- explaining why they are not eaten.
    I'd say the oil gets on them after they float away. If there is petroleum leaking to Antarctica -- that would be a HUGE issue and noticeable.

    Any of these reasons is cause to worry.
    • fritzbrown, on 07/21/2008, -3/+6I'm sorry but is that your professional "guess" based on years of penguin, Antarctic ice flow, ocean current and Brazilian off shore oil drilling "guessing"?
      • VitriolAndAngst, on 07/21/2008, -6/+5No, I'm just reading the ideas of Professionals and GUESSING based upon the three options they presented.

        I'm a damn good Guesser, as a matter of fact. I get things I know nothing about right about 70% of the time.

        Most of my comment above was from researchers. I definitely could be wrong. I'm just guessing that it ISN'T toxins getting to Antarctica -- mainly because the current pushed them INTO the toxins after they got swept away. That's why I'm a good guesser, I can pay attention to the order of events.

        It would be good information to know how well fed or emaciated the birds looked. If they were hungry before they swam out, or starved after. Also, the researchers should be able to see how long they were poisoned.

        But again, it would be easy to detect the oil or pesticides getting to a pristine environment and the current is going the wrong way -- kind of an easy assumption to make.
  • Retype, on 07/21/2008, -6/+7They look fine to me!
  • DarthShaun, on 07/21/2008, -6/+68So this seal walks into a club...
  • fromaworld, on 07/21/2008, -13/+13That's right. Blame everything on global warming...

    "Are pollution or overfishing to blame?" Maybe

    "Another one to pin on climate change?" Erli Costa, a biologist at Federal University, thinks so. He did some serious research and just pulled a theory out of his ass that blames the penguin deaths on global warming and fluctuating weather.
    • Sunnygurm, on 07/21/2008, -6/+3i hope thats sarcasm...for your sake anyway.
      • normalizer, on 07/21/2008, -3/+2why, ya gonna kick his ass if he ain't?

        Big tough guy you turned out to be....
      • Sunnygurm, on 07/22/2008, -0/+1No... I hope it's sarcasm for his sake because if he were serious he's at risk of being a total idiot.

        Kind of like you.
  • overt, on 07/21/2008, -6/+43Viral campaign for the next Batman movie?
    • innovati, on 07/21/2008, -4/+3wait, virus killed them?

      hmmmm double viral marketing, the best in both senses of the word!
    • Keith483, on 07/21/2008, -1/+1I lol'd
  • chrisinsocalif, on 07/21/2008, -3/+25Guess "March of the Penguins" won't have a sequel.
    • LokitheComplex, on 07/21/2008, -1/+7I don't know you could have "the Death March of the Penguins"
    • ortucis, on 07/21/2008, -1/+9Washed up Penguin actors..

    • Codwhy, on 07/21/2008, -1/+1"Float of the Penguins"
    • vbullinger, on 07/21/2008, -0/+1Mass Suicide of the Penguins?
  • gentlementlemen, on 07/21/2008, -8/+5In an unrelated story, a nun serial killer is on the loose in Brazil.
  • grneye53, on 07/21/2008, -10/+4To many "MOJITO'S & COCAINE"
  • grneye53, on 07/21/2008, -11/+2maybe they heard the "IPHONE" is coming to Rio
  • Eivo, on 07/21/2008, -17/+46These comments suck.
    • electricyellow, on 07/21/2008, -5/+2I totally disagree. The only way only two things heal all wounds... time and laughter. And thinking of that nun serial killer just makes these penguins taste even better. Also, having not read the article, I have my own alternative explanation using my little knowledge about the one Penguin species I saw in the wild:
      When ferry penguins hatch on the beach, they stampede en mass toward the ocean. Many get trampled. Perhaps there was high-tide at just the right time after this annual phenomenon occurred, and the current was just right... Is this plausible?
    • DeskFlyer, on 07/21/2008, -1/+6We'll do it live, then.
    • TD_Birds, on 07/21/2008, -2/+14"These comments suck" comments suck.
  • KungFuHippy, on 07/21/2008, -6/+11this is really bad guys.
  • sankakugatame, on 07/21/2008, -7/+0pwnd
  • BHO4Prez, on 07/21/2008, -6/+1So we should stop all off shore drilling to save a few hundred penguins and polar bears? Yea that is very realistic.
    • daehnomel, on 07/21/2008, -2/+4No, we should stop using oil altogether. Oil is a finite resource and its continued use is unrealistic. It's costing American's trillions.
  • Majink, on 07/21/2008, -1/+47From the Discovery.com article:

    "he pointed out that already dead penguins aren't brought in for treatment."

    ... yeah that would be wise since well, they be all dead and *****.
  • crapmatic, on 07/21/2008, -1/+3Buried as blogspam. See the 4th or 5th comment for the actual news story.
  • marx2k, on 07/21/2008, -3/+2I blame it on Rio
    • cjshamrock, on 07/21/2008, -1/+1Blame it on the samba. The penguins were probably just trying to get to a surfing competition
  • getjustin, on 07/21/2008, -1/+8And they're still so ***** cute....
  • mattlohkamp, on 07/21/2008, -0/+7dead baby penguins on the beach at Rio is probably one of the saddest things I've ever heard. :[
    • Monk22, on 07/21/2008, -1/+5then you've had a pretty easy life
      • mattlohkamp, on 07/22/2008, -1/+1jealous?
      • Monk22, on 07/22/2008, -0/+1hardly, if thats the saddest thing youve heard. you probably dont get out of your moms basement much.
    • geoboy, on 07/21/2008, -0/+3What's more sad than a pile of dead baby penguins? How about there's one underneath the pile that is still alive. And what could possibly be more terrible than that? Well, it has to eat its way out if it wants to live! And what's worse than that? Once it makes its escape, it comes back to eat some more!!!
  • stealthc, on 07/21/2008, -4/+3Not to worry. I'm sure someone will find a way to blame it on John McCain.
  • cjshamrock, on 07/21/2008, -2/+4This is very odd. In recent years, there have been numerous reports of whales and other dead animals washing up on our beaches. But penguins?

    I think the environmental catastrophes Al Gore was talking about are already in course.
  • BassJunkie, on 07/21/2008, -8/+3p-p-p-p-p-pickup a penguin :-)
  • zaphodfl, on 07/21/2008, -4/+5Overfishing... not Global Warming.

    • gn0stik, on 07/21/2008, -0/+1unless of course, they floated away on a flow, that then melted.
    • jonmlm, on 07/21/2008, -0/+2either way = stupid humans fault
  • tman84, on 07/21/2008, -3/+19600 more penguins found dead of apparent suicide after reading digg comments on this article
  • sotloo, on 07/21/2008, -2/+1Look the answer to this is simple they came to find out what the hell happened to all their fish and ice. Some of the little buggers just didn’t make it. Then again it could be some bizarre form of protest that we just don’t fully understand. Perhaps they are saying "please stop jacking up the planet or you will see more of this …"
  • sharternarter, on 07/21/2008, -7/+2Who else is gonna make a coat?
  • DestroyFascism, on 07/21/2008, -1/+7Food chain breaking down?
  • thornae, on 07/21/2008, -0/+3My father did a couple of winters in Antarctica on the Australian scientific stations there.
    During one trek, after a blizzard, he found a gully full of dead penguins, blown there from the nearby rookery - he estimated there were thousands of them.

    Being a penguin is dangerous. Some years, lots of them die. This is not to say this is to be ignored, but if it's an isolated event... maybe it was just a bad year.
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