Lifestyle Pets Nesting Chinstrap Penguins Take Over 10,000 Small Naps Throughout the Day, New Research Finds The naps last for only around 4 seconds at a time, researchers said By Nicholas Rice Nicholas Rice Nicholas Rice is a Senior Editor for PEOPLE Magazine. He began working with the brand as an Editorial Intern in early 2020, before later transitioning to a freelance role, and then staff positions soon after. Nicholas writes and edits anywhere between 7 to 9 stories per day on average for PEOPLE, spanning across each vertical the brand covers. People Editorial Guidelines Published on December 3, 2023 11:35AM EST Close Chinstrap Penguin. Photo: Getty Chinstrap penguins love a good nap — or 10,000! According to research published in the journal Science earlier this week, nesting birds in colonies in Antarctica take over 10,000 naps throughout the day. The naps, which the research described as microsleeps — "seconds-long interruptions of wakefulness by eye closure and sleep-related brain activity," per the journal — last for only around 4 seconds at a time. Still, the research suggested that the naps add up and amount to 11 hours total of sleep.Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Chinstrap Penguin. Getty ET Turns 43! World's Oldest African Penguin Celebrates Birthday at Virginia Zoo In order to study the penguins, scientists inserted devices into a small group of the animals' skulls. Using brain wave and location data, which was paired with filming the animals, researchers were able to get the data they were looking for. Researchers also said in the study that they believe the penguins taking short interval naps helps them avoid predators. "Pretty much every study on sleeping birds discovers something new, something we didn't know about before," study co-author Paul-Antoine Libourel, a researcher at the French CNRS in the Neurosciences Research Center of Lyon, said in a statement, per NPR.