Penguin On A British Beach?

A penguin might have recently visited a British beach near Yarmouth. Jean Edwards claims to have seen the penguin standing on the beach, and she took a photo of it with her mobile phone. But wildlife experts are skeptical that it really is a penguin. After all, penguins live at the South Pole, so it would be a long way for one to travel. And no local zoos have reported any penguins missing.

Kieran Copeland, animal care manager at Hunstanton Sealife Sanctuary, speculated that it might be a guillemot (though he can't explain why the guillemot would have its winter plumage): "The beak does not look right for a penguin, it looks way too thin, and I am not convinced. It looks a lot more like a guillemot, but the dark colour would more correspond to its winter plumage, and it's the wrong time of the year."

Coincidentally, a penguin seen wandering along the banks of the river Thames was the theme of The Sun's April Fool's Day joke this year. But I doubt that the bird seen by Mrs. Edwards has anything to do with The Sun's joke. (via The Anomalist)

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