Random Reasons Why Penguins Are The Cutest (14 items)

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  (#1) Penguins Laugh Hysterically When Tickled

  This little penguin gets a big kick out of being tickled in the video above. Somehow, this makes penguins that much more adorable, knowing that even when they’re waddling on the outside, they’re often laughing on the inside. This penguin here is so sweet the zookeepers named it Cookie. Baby penguin Cookie suffers from an illness known as bumblefoot. Even their illnesses have cute little names.
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  (#2) Penguins Spend Hours Getting All Dolled Up

  Spoiler alert for those who think Mother Nature made the penguin so darn cute. They’re not just natural beauties. It turns out they actually have a whole beauty regime. Penguins spend a great deal of their time oiling, washing and straightening their feathers as part of a process called “preening.” Once a year, they go as far as to shed their old, dirty feathers and grow new ones. Spring preening, anyone?
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  (#3) They Call Out To Their Lovers With Unique Songs

  They say that music is the food of love, and penguin love is no exception. When penguins find their love, they sing to them. Only a truly lucky lady can induce a penguin’s song. In fact, penguins are so in tune with their soulmates, the songs they sing for one another are 100 percent unique. They're sort of like a fingerprint on the heart. That's true love! 
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  (#4) They Propose With Stones

  Here's an engaging penguin tale that's true and super sweet. During mating season, male penguins sift through piles of stones searching for the perfect pebble, the one that'll knock their soon-to-be soul mate right off her feet. Upon retrieval of the perfect pebble, male penguins put their hearts on the line by presenting the stone to their love. If the stone is accepted, a penguin "marriage" take place. The good news? Nobody needs to buy a tux for the wedding - they're already wearing them!
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  (#5) They Get Penguin Married And Penguin Divorced

  Penguins fall in love and choose a lifelong mate, sort of like marriage. If things don’t work out, they get a “penguin divorce” and separate from each other, seeking a new lifetime partner in romance. As scientists continue to study these feathered creatures, they're learning that their love lives are even more complicated than we originally perceived. From steamy romances to jealous stand offs, love and marriage is that much more fiery over ice.
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  (#6) Male Emperor Penguins Stand Still For 65 Days To Protect Their Young

  Talk about being dedicated fathers! Male emperor penguins are in charge of keeping their solitary egg warm until it hatches. In order to snuggle up with their unborn children, these brave little penguins stand still for 65 days straight in the blustery weather of the Antarctic while balancing the eggs on their tiny webbed feet. For extra security, they cover their feet with their own feathers. 
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  (#7) They're Family Oriented And Share Parental Responsibilities

  Married penguins raise their young together, even if they're experiencing turmoil in the relationship. They take turns feeding, teaching and primping their young feathered offspring. Once the children reach the age of growing adult plumage (usually at age one), they're sent out to learn in groups during the day and then later they return home to their families, kinda like school. 
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  (#8) They Hug

  Penguins possess distinct personalities and many of their traits are adorably human. For example, they enjoy a soothing, warm embrace. Whether they hug their baby, their life partner, or maybe even you (if you're lucky) it's guaranteed to melt the heart. During extreme storms, penguins engage in a group hug known as a huddle that often gets so hot they have to eat snow afterwards in order to cool down. 
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  (#9) They Kiss

  The penguin’s kiss is about as unique as the flightless bird itself. Much like how bee bodies aren't scientifically equipped for flight but they fly anyway, penguin beaks were not built for kisses but they plant them all over each other nevertheless. Love always trumps science for penguins and it shows by the way they kiss.
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  (#10) Penguins Adopt Orphans

  Pregnant penguins exhibit a unique hormone called PRL or, in laymen’s terms, The Parenting Hormone. It causes symptoms similar to postpartum depression in instances where a pregnant penguin’s baby dies. In many of these cases, the would have been mommies rifle through the colony and seek out abandoned chicks to raise as their own. These chicks are not limited to their own penguin species either. There have been multiple instances wherein penguins have adopted birds of a different species as well.
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  (#11) They Go Boogie Boarding On Their Bellies To Get Around

  Penguins have an altogether infectious waddle that helps them keep their balance on ice. You might have noticed though, said waddle isn't very fast. When a penguin wants to pick up the pace, they use their belly to travel instead. Seeing them shimmying face first down snowy landscapes is enough to brighten anybody's day.
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  (#12) They Beautify The Landscape

  The penguin is a nautical bird, sprinkling nutrients wherever it goes. From land to sea, from the Arctic to the tropics, penguins are doing more than just killing us with cuteness, they’re also make the world a plentiful, beautiful place. Many scientists believe that they lost their ability to fly in order to master the craft of swimming and optimizing Earth's great oceans. They're a huge source of food that keeps the ocean ecosystem humming, and because of their land and sea diet, they help fertilize and spread seeds that help certain plants grow. 
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  (#13) Penguin Colonies Have Larger Populations Than Some Countries

  Penguins thrive in flocks and while you might imagine them all huddled together in below freezing temperatures, staring out into the world from the edge of a glacier; the largest penguin population actually exists on an island. It’s known as South Sandwich Island. It's home to a colony of more than 2 million penguins. That’s a larger population than the number of humans in Greenland, Aruba and the Cayman Islands combined!
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  (#14) Penguins Blow Bubbles Underwater

  When submerged, the mighty penguin can achieve swimming speeds as high as 15 miles per hour. The marvelous creature can swim for an impressive length of time also. But, you know what really steals our hearts? Their underwater bubbles. Each one is like a circular love symbol silently making its way across the ocean. These little guys generate bubbles that help them swim faster. 

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