Penguin Swims 5,000 Miles To Brazil Each Year To Meet With Rescuer

John Keefer

Devilish Rogue
Aug 12, 2013
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Penguin Swims 5,000 Miles To Brazil Each Year To Meet With Rescuer


The Penguin Returns. No, it isn't a Batman movie, just a heartwarming story of a penguin that makes an incredibly long swim each year to reunite with the fisherman that saved its life.

This may or may not be a science story, but it's definitely heartwarming, and one that gives some insight into animal relationships. Meet Dindim the penguin.

Late in 2011, Dindim was laying on a beach in Brazil covered in oil. He was starving and dying from the petroleum weighing down his feathers. Local fisherman Joao Pereira de Souza, 71, found him, cleaned him up, fed him and nursed him back to health. Dindim was so grateful that he did not leave.

"He stayed with me for 11 months and then just after he changed his coat with new feathers he disappeared," de Souza said in an interview [http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/meet-dindim-the-penguin-who-returns-to-his-human-soulmate-every-year-a6917621.html]. And now each year, the penguin returns to visit his friend.

Dindim is a South American Magellanic penguin that usually breeds off the Patagonian coasts of Argentina and Chile, anywhere from 3,000 to 5,000 miles away. In this case, Dindim probably heads there to breed, but returns to stay with de Souza eight months a year at the fishing village.

"I have never seen anything like this before. I think the penguin believes Joao is part of his family and probably a penguin as well," said biologist Joao Paulo Krajewski. "When he sees him he wags his tail like a dog and honks with delight."

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"I love the penguin like it's my own child and I believe the penguin loves me," de Souza told Globo TV. "No one else is allowed to touch him. He pecks them if they do. He lays on my lap, lets me give him showers, allows me to feed him sardines and to pick him up."

Source: The Independent [http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/meet-dindim-the-penguin-who-returns-to-his-human-soulmate-every-year-a6917621.html]

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Mar 30, 2010
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Must ... maintain ... minimum ... Internet ... cynicism ... levels ...

Gah! Goddammit, I can't do it. Ok, that's cute as hell.
 

RJ 17

The Sound of Silence
Nov 27, 2011
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Sorry, but calling out spelling errors and such in internet articles is literally the only use I get out of having a degree in English. :p

John Keefer said:
This may be a science story or not, but it it's definitely heartwarming,
Also a less awkward wording of the sentence would be "This may or may not be a science story, but it's definitely heartwarming...

Dindim is a South American Magellanic penguin that usually breeds of off the Patagonian coasts...
There you go. :3
 

John Keefer

Devilish Rogue
Aug 12, 2013
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RJ 17 said:
Sorry, but calling out spelling errors and such in internet articles is literally the only use I get out of having a degree in English. :p

John Keefer said:
This may be a science story or not, but it it's definitely heartwarming,
Also a less awkward wording of the sentence would be "This may or may not be a science story, but it's definitely heartwarming...

Dindim is a South American Magellanic penguin that usually breeds of off the Patagonian coasts...
There you go. :3
Thanks. Fixed.
 

THM

New member
Sep 27, 2014
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That's a wonderful story. Why can't we have more of these here? :)
 

John Keefer

Devilish Rogue
Aug 12, 2013
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THM said:
That's a wonderful story. Why can't we have more of these here? :)
Good idea. I'll see about getting some more feel-good stories in the news feed.
 

Sniper Team 4

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Apr 28, 2010
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And there are people out there who still think animals are "dumb".

Much better story than the last penguin one we got. This is adorable.
 

Neurotic Void Melody

Bound to escape
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Jul 15, 2013
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So...if i rescue an oily penguin myself and clean it all up, it will be my friend forever and ever?

Squeee! Let's go save some god damned penguins!!
 

Sniper Team 4

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Apr 28, 2010
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Souplex said:
Sniper Team 4 said:
Much better story than the last penguin one we got. This is adorable.
...Dare I ask?
Asking, there is no harm in. Reading, though...don't read if you don't want to end up being depressed:

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/166409-Penguin-Colony-Nears-End-After-Iceberg-Cuts-Off-Food-Source#&gid=gallery_5686&pid=1
 

Jburton9

New member
Aug 21, 2012
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Gah! I seem to have gotten something in my eye...

Thank you for posting this, it has made my day : )

Captcha - click bodies of water. Yes most definitely heh.
 

happyninja42

Elite Member
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May 13, 2010
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Imperioratorex Caprae said:
Poor Penguin gonna be sad if man passes away and he can't find him after the next trek. But otherwise awesome.
Yeah, was thinking same thing. Dude's pretty old. :(
 

NPC009

Don't mind me, I'm just a NPC
Aug 23, 2010
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Silentpony said:
I smell another Pixar movie...
Don't say that! Do you want your tears to be harvested again? Besides, you already know how the story will go! The old man will die while the penguin is away, and the poor, lonely thing will keep waiting for him Hachi style until he befriends some bullied kids. Together they rediscover the power of friendship.
 

CyanCat47_v1legacy

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Nov 26, 2014
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Sniper Team 4 said:
And there are people out there who still think animals are "dumb".

Much better story than the last penguin one we got. This is adorable.
Many birds sense differences in the earths geomagnetic field and navigate by these. that is how they know where to migrate every year. penguins in particular also have tight familial systems that are necessary to survive in the cold and keep the children safe from predators. despite their smaller brains some types of birds have very keen memries. for example a raven will recognize your face and if you mistreat it this will cause the raven to scream at you whenever it sees you again. because of this it becam the symbol of the greek god of vengance, Nemesis