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How does a father penguin keep his egg warm all winter — and eat nothing?

Imagine: minus 60 degrees. The wind whistles so hard that it knocks you off your feet. All around is only snow and ice. And in the middle of this terrible cold stands a father penguin, holding a single egg in his paws. He stands for 65 days. Without food. Without water. Without sleep.

This is an emperor penguin, the largest penguin in Antarctica. It is almost as tall as you - up to 130 centimeters. When a mother penguin lays an egg, she hands it to her father and goes to sea to catch fish - she needs to gain strength. And the father hides the egg under a fold of skin on his belly, which warms it like a warm down.

And you know what's most amazing? Papa penguins huddle together tightly, thousands of them, in a big, warm ball. Those on the edge eventually move inward to keep warm, and those who have been warming themselves become a protection for the others. This is called "queuing for warmth." No penguin is left alone in the cold.

During these two months, the father loses half of his weight. Imagine: you weigh 30 kg, and you become 15. He loses weight, but he does not throw an egg for a minute. If he drops it on the ice, the chick will die in two seconds.

When mom returns from the ocean full, she brings fish for the little penguin. And dad can finally go eat.

A father's love can be like that - silent, cold on the outside, but the hottest on the inside.