Coordinated movements prevent jamming in an Emperor penguin huddle.

For Emperor penguins (Aptenodytes forsteri), huddling is the key to survival during the Antarctic winter. Penguins in a huddle are packed so tightly that individual movements become impossible, reminiscent of a jamming transition in compacted colloids. It is crucial, however, that the huddle structu...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Daniel P Zitterbart, Barbara Wienecke, James P Butler, Ben Fabry
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2011-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC3106014?pdf=render