Watch Emperor penguins huddle to survive the Antarctic winter. Constant shuffling maintains an even body temperature for every penguin — a masterpiece of cooperative thermoregulation.
Cold penguins on the outside gradually push inward toward the warm centre. This creates a slow rotational wave through the colony, ensuring every penguin spends equal time warm and cold.
Watch the colony huddle and shuffle. Use the temperature slider to change outside temperature and see how the huddle tightens in colder conditions. Click to scatter and regroup.
Emperor penguin huddles can reach 37°C at the centre while outside temperature is −40°C. The huddling behaviour is so thermally efficient the colony can survive without eating for up to 4 months during blizzards.