Penguin-like bird pops up in Brevard

Scientists not sure why this cold-weather critter so far south

They typically winter no farther south than New Jersey. Maybe Hurricane Sandy steered them off course or disrupted their usual diet of schooling fish.

Biologists aren’t sure why razorbills, penguin-like birds, have flocked to the Space Coast and elsewhere in Florida.

The black birds with white underbellies flapped their way to Kennedy Space Center, where Audubon members spotted a few recently during their annual Christmas Bird Count.

“Everybody’s talking about it,” said Ned Steel, who coordinates the Audubon count on Merritt Island, which includes the secure  area of the space center.

Blogging birders have dubbed it a “razorbill invasion of Florida,” posting their photos as proof on a Google pin map.

Continued:  http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20121227/NEWS01/312270040/Penguin-like-bird-pops-up-Brevard?nclick_check=1