By Kevin E. Noonan — Penguins are unique among bird species, having lost the ability to fly more than 60 million years ago and adopting a "hyperspecialized marine body plan" consistent with their unique habitat in the higher latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere. Key geological events are believed to be in part responsible, with major climate oscillations that led the penguins to find ecological refuge and then recolonize previous niches. A recent study by an international team of scientists* reported specifics of penguin natural history and genetic structure in a paper entitled "Genomic insights into the secondary aquatic transition of…
