Penguins can shoot poo more than four feet away, according to a new study.
Penguins
Research in Japan has uncovered that the birds typically send their faeces around 1.2 metres away at a speed of 4.5 mph.
The paper, published by Hiroyuki Tajima of Kochi University and Fumiya Fujisawa of Katsurahama Aquarium, said: ''The flying distance of penguin's faeces reaches about 0.4 metres [1.3 feet] even on the ground.''
The study warned zookeepers to keep their distance from the creatures.
It said: ''We found that penguin keepers should keep a distance of longer than 1.34 metres [4.4 feet] from penguins trying to eject faeces in the Katsurahama aquarium.''
However, Chris Holland - a natural material expert from the University of Sheffield - suggested that the study may have overestimated the projections.