Judi Rogers, age 10, of Coronado, California, for her question:

How does a penguin bear her young?

Mrs. Penguin, of course, is a bird and all birds lay eggs; the eggs are hatched by keeping them at the right warmth. Mother Nature loves all her children equally and all her creatures must obey her voice, especially when it comes to handing on life to the next generation. Maybe she has a special fondness for the feathery birds because virtually all of them do such an excellent job of carrying out the duties of parent¬hood.

We share our rich, teeming world with 15 different penguin species. Number 15 lives a life of ease on the Galapagos Islands that straddle the equator. The rest of them live farther south. Some make their homes along rugged shores around New Zealand, Australia and South America. And some of the hardy fellas cope with life in the icebound Antartic. This south polar region has the world's harshest climate    yet this does not hamper the parent penquins from hatching their eggs and rearing their young.

You might expect the penguins of the cruel south polar climate to be grim characters. Not at all. In spite of the long, colder than cold winter night of biting blizzards and icy waters, they are just about the happiest birds in the world. They enjoy sliding, toboganning and other winter sports on the icy glaciers and frolic like playful clowns in the chilly seas. Above all, they love the company of other penguins. And this friendly feature has a lot to do with their happy family life.

All penguins nest in large colonies with just enough room to waddle between their neighbors. Every year they return to the same nesting ground and begin the exciting business of courting. Mr. Penguin brings a gift to his favorite lady. Since she lives on fish, candy would not interest her and flowers do not bloom in these desolate regions. So, of all things, he carefully selects a smooth round pebble and presents it at her feet.

It so happens that this is a very sensible gift. Most penguins nest on the ground, building a platform of pebbles. Sometimes a male penguin will snitch a special pebble away from a rival. But this game soon subsides and the parents settle down to their duties. Mrs. Penguin lays two large, round eggs and then her devoted husband takes over his role as head of the family.. He arranges his warm, bulky body on the  nest and begins the long process of incubation. Sometimes Mrs. Penguin takes a turn at babysitting. Sometimes the patient father sits there, fasting one or two months until the precious little ones hatch. Meantime the neighboring chicks are hatching and equalling, hungry chicks are everywhere. The excited parents take turns going to the sea, often miles away, to stuff their beaks with shrimps and fish. When they return, they open their bills and the chicks dip in for their share of the predigested food. The place is crowded with chicks all looking alike. But no parent ever makes a mistake. Mother and father always return to their own nest and feed only their own children.

The largest and most lordly penguins are the Emperors. They live along the shores of Antarctica and nest right on the desolate polar icecap: Mrs. Emperor Penguin lays only one egg and the parents never let it rest on the frosty ice. The loving father uses his beak to place it on top of his big wide feet. Then he tenderly tucks it under a wars blanket of loose skin that hangs down from his turmy. Soon the mother bird takes her turn and the precious egg is carefully maneuvered from parent to parent    without touching the ice for a single moment.