Robot baby penguin helps scientists study penguin behaviour

We want one.

Well, this is both clever and cute.

Researchers from the University of Strasbourg devised a nifty way of getting up close and personal in order to study the behaviour of these penguins in Adelie Land, Antarctica..

Led by Yvon Le Maho, the team were studying the effects of climate change on King and Emperor penguins. As part of the study, it was necessary to fit the penguins with external heart monitors. But they then needed to be able to read the results.

Pic: Yvon Le Maho et al. Nature Methods

While sending a regular rover fitted with an antenna worked fine with the King penguins who just ignored it, Emperor penguins are a lot more territorial and also pretty shy so the researchers had to get creative.

Hence, the baby penguin costume - they tried our five different versions before landing on the perfect one.

And it worked! So well in fact, that the Emperor penguins accepted the penguin rover as one of their own.

“Chicks and adults were even heard vocalizing at the camouflaged rover, and it was able to infiltrate a crèche without disturbance,” note Yvon Le Maho and colleagues.

Would it be possible to get a job at one of these penguin crèches, do you think?

Pic: Yvon Le Maho et al. Nature Methods

The only real question though is are they for sale and where can we buy one?