Canada Has Become Colder Than North Pole, Even Penguins Are Forced To Seek Shelter

Just how cold is Canada? Why don¡¯t just ask the penguins who have taken shelter to stay away from the chilly winds? The penguins in Calgary Zoo have taken shelter as the temperature in Canada¡¯s capital Toronto slips to -11 degree Celsius and other parts touched -22 degree Celsius. Ice bubbles and frozen falls have set stage for stunning sights amid all the snow and biting-cold winds.

King penguins -- one of five species at the zoo in western Alberta province -- are certainly accustomed to chilly weather, more so than species like the Humboldt that prefer somewhat warmer climes, said zoo curator Malu Celli.

Being a fluffy juvenile penguin is hard work, and sometimes Cleopatra needs a little rest. Thankfully, members of her family are always around to keep watch over her. Help us #captionthisphoto! pic.twitter.com/VG3ccja9SP

¡ª Calgary Zoo (@calgaryzoo) December 29, 2017

But with a cold snap pushing temperatures below minus 30 degrees Celsius (minus 22 Fahrenheit) on New Year's Eve -- and feeling more like minus 40 in the wind -- and with one five-month-old penguin chick still maturing, zoo officials decided to draw a line in the snow on Sunday, setting minus 25 as the birds' limit.

They brought the 10 kings into their heated enclosure, where they can still be viewed by humans brave enough to be out.

Across Canada, planned New Year's Eve festivities in several cities -- for humans, that is -- were moved indoors amid a particularly brutal cold snap.

AFP

For nearly a week, most of Canada has been under an extreme cold alert. At mid-day, Monday, the country's coldest temperature was registered in Eureka, in northern Nunavut territory, at minus 40.5 degrees. The highest was in Prince Rupert, in the western province of British Colombia, at minus 7.5 degrees.