The Case of the 150,000 ‘Dead’ Penguins

VIRAL MISTAKE

You may have read that an Antarctic colony of penguins was trapped by an iceberg and died, killed by climate change. But there’s a twist: All parts of the story turn out to be untrue.

Published Feb. 22 2016 12:28AM EST

articles/2016/02/22/the-case-of-the-150-000-dead-penguins/160221-collins-missing-penguins-tease_mjc5ou — Daniel Garcia/AFP/Getty

Some good news for 150,000 dead penguins in Antarctica: They might not be dead. Bad news: There may not be any hope for the rest of us.

Major news outlets ran with a widely mischaracterized study from Australian and New Zealand researchers in Commonwealth Bay, Antarctica, saying enough penguins to fill...

Ben Collins

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The Case of the 150,000 ‘Dead’ Penguins

You may have read that an Antarctic colony of penguins was trapped by an iceberg and died, killed by climate change. But there’s a twist: All parts of the story turn out to be untrue.

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Ben Collins