There are penguins and then there are penguins. This particular penguin, a Gentoo Penguin Pygoscelis papua, is one heck of a brave (or foolhardy) penguin. Watch as it literally jumps onto a sea lion seal, a sea lion seal that is none too happy about being used as a trampoline, I might add. I know nothing else about this video, other than I found it through Equals 3, a great YouTube video review show done by Ray William Johnson. Seriously though, this penguin deserves either a medal or a slap upside the head. Either way, cool video!
Corey is a New Yorker who lived most of his life in upstate New York but has lived in Queens since 2008. He's only been birding since 2005 but has garnered a respectable life list by birding whenever he wasn't working as a union representative or spending time with his family. He lives in Forest Hills with Daisy, their son, Desmond Shearwater, and their indoor cat, B.B. His bird photographs have appeared on the Today Show, in Birding, Living Bird Magazine, Bird Watcher's Digest, and many other fine publications. He is also the author of the American Birding Association Field Guide to the Birds of New York.
Not a Sealion, but a seal, a Southern Elephant Seal I believe. Not much of a threat to it, unless it crushed it.
I concurr with Claire. A “brave” penguin would have pulled that stunt on a leopard seal.
@Clare: Corrected, thanks.
@Duncan: Come on, I’d be afraid to get that close to an elephant seal. That penguin is gutsy (yeah, yeah, yeah, don’t anthropomorphize, but, whatever).
I’d be cautious around a bull, maybe. But they are the most approachable of the seals. And that thing is still a weiner.
Clearly a slap upside the head, but it will be getting one anyway. I am pretty sure it was all submerged in thoughts, trying to come up with an excuse to tell its wife for coming home late – like a Great White Shark attack or so – when really what it had done was go twitch some famous American birders that had been spotted on a tourist “research” vessel nearby, which was so important to do as it is doing a big birdering year.