Satellite images show how penguins’ diets are changing in response to Antarctic climate change

An Adélie penguin swims through the ocean. Casey Youngflesh, CC BY

The color of penguin poop, as seen from space, is offering a new window into how the ecology and the environment of Antarctica are changing over time.

Adélie penguins are one of the most abundant predators in the Southern Ocean. They rely on food sources in the ocean, but nest on rocky outcrops all around the Antarctic continent.