Though penguins live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere and aren’t found in the United States, that didn’t stop Americans from celebrating National Penguin Awareness Day yesterday. That’s right, yesterday was a designated day to celebrate penguins!

If you’re sorry to have missed it because you love penguins’ cute little waddles and their stylish tuxedo coloring, there’s no need to wait another 364 days to reconsider their plight.

After all, these little guys and gals are facing huge survival challenges every day due to overfishing, the acidification of the ocean and climate change. Just this past year, five penguin species in South America and New Zealand were bestowed protection under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.

And while yesterday’s event encouraged us to celebrate the penguins’ plight by dressing in black-and-white, replacing our dekstop wallpaper with penguin pictures and watching the animated film Happy Feet, I’m sure the penguins would much prefer that you check out and support the penguin research, conservation and rescue programs compiled by Dyan deNapoli, the Penguin Lady.

In addition, you can always don a fantastic vintage penguin pin like today’s VPODs. This HI/LO presentation includes two very similar vintage penguin pins with widely disparate prices. Can you identify the HI and the LO?

Either one is a penguin-lovin’ find for a vintage fashionista!

Available from Gaspee Sales at Ruby Lane and from Hawaii Beads on eBay.

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