News Ecosystems

Sea Change: People have affected what penguins eat

By Sid Perkins

- More than 2 years ago

The eating habits of Adélie penguins in Antarctica changed significantly about 200 years ago, according to chemical analyses of the birds’ eggshells. Scientists attribute the shift in diet to whaling and other hunting in the region.

DIET CHRONICLE. Shifts in the chemical composition of Adélie penguins’ eggshell fragments suggest that the birds’ diet has changed significantly in the past 200 years.