Penguins work together to commit an outrageous heist involving a pelican

We need to talk about penguins. And there's never a dearth of adorable "penguin-isms" as these brilliant, frosty birds continue to teach us lessons that could possibly inspire us to be better human beings.

Back in 2005, Morgan Freeman narrated the award-winning documentary March of the Penguins, which was beautifully directed by Luc Jacquet. It was beloved by critics and audiences alike and even won an Oscar for Best Documentary Feature.

A lot of us fell in love with these fascinating seabirds as they traveled miles across the snowy terrain of Antarctica. Among many of the film's takeaways, we learn that the male emperor penguins waddle miles in temperatures as cold as 70 degrees below zero. Crushing winds, starvation—nothing stops them from attempting to find their mate. Kinda like Bumble, but with a lot more work put into it.

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In her review, film critic Christy Lemire wrote for the Associated Press, "They mate once, and if they did it right, a single egg follows. Here’s where things get really dicey: The mother briefly holds the egg on the tops of her feet, covering it with the warmth of her underbelly, before carefully passing it off to the father to protect in the same manner."

What follows is a beautiful, often heart-crushing tale of resilience, loyalty, adaptation, and seemingly—love. And speaking of love, as discussed in a 2024 Upworthy article, penguins give each other love-pebbles as a romantic gesture. Facebook's National Geographic Live page shares: "In the world of penguins, true love isn't sealed with a kiss — it's sealed with a rock. These devoted birds search for the perfect pebble to gift their mate, a symbol of love, commitment, and the foundation of their future nest. Who needs diamonds when you have a rock-solid romance?"

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There have been many animated movies and documentaries about penguins, of course. But because we just can't get enough, Disney Plus/Hulu is releasing the new three-part documentary Secrets of the Penguins, which is premiering in April to celebrate Earth Month. Produced by James Cameron, alongside Talesmith Productions, and led by Nat Geo filmmaker Bertie Gregory, it's footage we've never seen before from different kinds of penguins all over the world.

ABC shares, "Bertie's natural history filming resonates so much with viewers that he has captured some of the most-viewed videos on Nat Geo's Instagram account this past year. The emperor penguins video has nearly 63 million views."

From the ABC website: "Over 70 world-class scientists and filmmakers embarked on a two-year, globe-spanning adventure—from the rocky beaches of Cape Town and the icy shores of South Georgia Island to the tropical Galapagos and Namibia's desert caves—capturing penguins like never before."

In just one part of the world alone, a three-person crew filmed for 274 days on an ice shelf in Antarctica with the aforementioned emperor penguins, among which there is a colony of around 20,000.

ABC also mentions the stunning moment in the Galapagos Islands when the penguins watch a pelican dive into the ocean, gulping up a fish. They wait for the moment the pelican must push the water it swallowed alongside its lunch. As its giant beak opens, the penguins perfectly time their "swoop-in" to steal the fish directly from the pelican's beak. It gives Ocean's Eleven a run for its money!