Do penquins have knees?

emx384 | 13:13 Thu 14th Jun 2007 | Animals & Nature

6 Answers

A discussion between me and my students - do penguins have knees??? I havent got a clue!!

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Clanad

Penguins, in common with all birds, have a different arrangement of joints in the legs from those in mammals. However, they do have joints equivalent to our knees - the difference is that these joints are much closer to the hip than on mammals (Source: Emperor Penguins National Geographic)

burnhal

Indeed- all birds walk on their toes- the bit that bends backwards in the 'leg' equates to the ankle. The knee generally speaking is hidden by feathers or within the body.

heathfield

You can see the equivilant of the knees in a penguin from the photo here.

emx384

Question Author

Thanks for that! I won a bet for them to do an extra lesson for coursework tomorrow!!!!

rockingian

Do penguins have knees?
Yes. Penguins appear to have very short legs and no knees because only the lower leg is externally visible. Their knees and upper legs are feather covered, hiding them from view. This also means that penguins never get cold knees! hope this helps .

CrazyWolfman

Penguin knees aren't very obvious, mainly because they've fused together (which is, in part, why they waddle so much).

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