“O Lord, Thou preservest man and beast. How excellent is Thy lovingkindness, O God!” Psalm 36:6,7.
How did these birds get the funny name of rockhopper? Let’s imagine we’re following one of these penguins around and we’ll soon learn the answer.
Leaving the female on the nest caring for the little chick, the male, early in the morning, hops along the edge of their high cliff to where there is a way down to the seashore below. It is rough and full of huge rocks, but these don’t bother him a bit. He just hops up and over them and soon is at the bottom where big waves are crashing in.
He immediately dives into a wave and is soon swimming in smooth water. Then he gets to work and, diving fairly deep, spots a small fish which also spots him and tries to swim away. But a rockhopper can swim faster, and soon the fish’s tail is in his mouth, and then . . . good-bye fish!
He may do this a few more times until his stomach is full. But then he needs one more to take to their little chick. So the next catch, instead of going all the way to his stomach, just goes to his crop.
When he and several others decide to head back to their nests, they may find that a storm has brought immense waves which are pounding against the rocks they need to reach. Before they are able to get a foothold on the rocks, they may find themselves washed back out time after time, until they finally get a foothold and climb out of the water.
Now they have a tough climb ahead of them, but one they are used to. Is a big rock in the way? Just hop to the top, and hop down the other side. This is done many times until they reach the top of the cliff and can scamper home, hopping over gullies and other things along the way. So you see it was only natural for these interesting penguins to be given the name rockhopper by those first discovering them.
When the male gets back to the chick, he will bring up the partially digested fish from his crop into his open beak where the hungry chick can reach it. The little one drops off to sleep after its meal, while the parents stand guard over it. They sometimes lean against each other and doze off too, giving the father a well-earned rest.
The manner of life and needs of people and other creatures are often quite different. How happy it made the Psalmist to think of the Creator’s preserving care over all living things, as expressed in the opening Bible verse. The birds, of course, don’t know He is caring for them, but we who do should always remember to thank Him, not only for His care, but also for His love, and that He has provided a way for us to know Him as our Saviour. Have you thanked Him for this?
ML-06/27/1993