But scientists tracked them down after they spotted scads of guano — penguin poop — on satellite images of an area where they had no idea such hordes existed. The islands host 751,527 nesting pairs of Adélie penguins — more than the entire rest of the peninsula — and include the third and fourth largest Adélie penguin colonies in the world, according to the researchers. Adélie penguins only live in Antarctica, and their population generally has been declining due to climate change and melting sea ice. But they seem to be faring better on the Danger Islands, which have more pack ice and extremely low ship traffic, the study notes. Based on aerial survey comparisons, the penguin population of the Danger Islands appears to have remained stable or even slightly increased over the last 60 years, according to the study.

Source: Huffington Post March 03, 2018 06:44 UTC