Eudyptula Minor -- little penguin, Kangaroo Island, Australia. These penguins are nocturnal, but are apparently blind to the red light. Unfortunately, according to Kangaroo Island Penguin Center, "Our nocturnal Penguin Tours ceased in November 2013 due to the very low numbers of Penguins in the Kingscote colony. Predation by the increasing numbers of New Zealand Fur Seals from 2010 onwards has decimated the Penguin Colony, because the seals kill the adult penguins as they swim ashore at night to feed their chicks and therefore the chicks also die. We apologise for this, but the situation has been beyond our control."
11 Comments
eric · 6 April 2015
I still remember seeing these guys up close and personal on Phillip Island (in Victoria rather than South Australia). This was back in the '70s, when you could get within a few feet of the nests and literally peer inside them, and occasionally a penguin would wander up onto the walkways. Its sad to hear this colony isn't doing well; I hope the others are doing better.
Ron Okimoto · 6 April 2015
Start exporting fur seal skins to Russia and balance the scales
Matt Young · 6 April 2015
I was wondering why the seals are suddenly predating [on?] the penguins -- has some other food source been sharply reduced?
Matt Young · 6 April 2015
Hm. I just checked a handful of dictionaries, trying to answer my own question, and only OED said that (besides being a synonym for antedate), predate is a back formation from predation. But it gave no indication how to use it in an active construction.
grendelsfather · 6 April 2015
suddenly predating [on?]
= 'suddenly preying on'
No one remembers how to English any more.
fnxtr · 6 April 2015
ain't nobody englishes gooder'n y'all.
robert van bakel · 6 April 2015
You mean, 'y'alls'.
Ron Okimoto · 7 April 2015
Matt Young said:
I was wondering why the seals are suddenly predating [on?] the penguins -- has some other food source been sharply reduced?
Just like here in the US the seal population is getting too high. Maybe we don't have enough great white sharks or killer whales to take care of the problem.
The decimated populations are coming back.
Just Bob · 7 April 2015
robert van bakel said:
You mean, 'y'alls'.
Nah, it's "alla y'all."
Matt Young · 7 April 2015
= âsuddenly preying onâ
No one remembers how to English any more.
A fair point, but predate is a perfectly good verb, and OED dated it to 1940 or thereabouts. Language evolves. Nevertheless, now that you mention it, preying on sounds better to me.
ksplawn · 8 April 2015
It's a perfectly cromulent embiggening of the lexicon.
11 Comments
eric · 6 April 2015
I still remember seeing these guys up close and personal on Phillip Island (in Victoria rather than South Australia). This was back in the '70s, when you could get within a few feet of the nests and literally peer inside them, and occasionally a penguin would wander up onto the walkways. Its sad to hear this colony isn't doing well; I hope the others are doing better.
Ron Okimoto · 6 April 2015
Start exporting fur seal skins to Russia and balance the scales
Matt Young · 6 April 2015
I was wondering why the seals are suddenly predating [on?] the penguins -- has some other food source been sharply reduced?
Matt Young · 6 April 2015
Hm. I just checked a handful of dictionaries, trying to answer my own question, and only OED said that (besides being a synonym for antedate), predate is a back formation from predation. But it gave no indication how to use it in an active construction.
grendelsfather · 6 April 2015
fnxtr · 6 April 2015
ain't nobody englishes gooder'n y'all.
robert van bakel · 6 April 2015
You mean, 'y'alls'.
Ron Okimoto · 7 April 2015
Just Bob · 7 April 2015
Matt Young · 7 April 2015
ksplawn · 8 April 2015
It's a perfectly cromulent embiggening of the lexicon.