Penguins and humans
A history book about the world's weirdest and most handsome bird and a seriously endangered animal.
Penguins were first sighted by European navigators at the end of the fifteenth century. At the bottom of the planet, off the coast of Southern Africa, there are “fat geese” that can't fly and let themselves be bludgeoned to death defenselessly. Since that discovery, the iconic birds have been exploited in every way possible. They were robbed of their eggs, boiled to make oil, and served with red berry jelly for Christmas. The penguin then became a zoo crowd-pleaser and became the silver screen star in films such as March of the Penguins and Happy Feet.
This book is about our relationship with nature. The penguin has a protected status. But what is it worth if we colonize its habitat, pollute the oceans and fish away its food?
In Penguins and Humans, Marcel Haenen outlines the problematic way to deal with these well-mannered creatures. He visits New Zealand's nearly extinct yellow-eyed penguins, walks in Cape Town's penguin hospital, and walks with penguin tourists in Antarctica. This story is a tribute to the cleanest bird on Earth, which is in danger of disappearing forever due to human actions.
The St. Andrews Bay in South Georgia has a busy beach that is home to 400,000 king penguins who have flocked here to raise the next generation.
Wikipedia: Penguins
