penguins

penguins, flightless, swim

in ‘rafts’ of numerous fellow creatures

so individuals survive

seals, whales, sea predators

overwhelmed by numbers

alone, each would be a quick snack

on land, they slide on their bellies

or walk upright awkwardly

causing a group to be called

a ‘waddle’

fascinating ‘little men in tuxedos’

some are four feet tall, other tiny

and all but unknown until only

two and a half centuries ago