Why Did the Penguin Go to the Mountain? It's Not Exactly a Fun Riddle

Users on TikTok have been posting clips from a penguin documentary that show one lone penguin veering off the path of its herd and heading to the mountains and, very likely, death and danger. And, as some began making theories about the reasoning behind it and even creating lore for the penguin, many asked why the penguin made the decision to go to the mountain.

Does it have a deeper meaning? Is the penguin making a statement about leading the herd and traveling its own path? Is it a message for humans? Those are all on the minds of users as they try and figure out what is going on in the clip. But, upon further investigation of the actual documentary that the clip is from, there is some clarity about why the penguin went to the mountain despite its dangers.

The clip, which is from the 2007 Werner Herzog documentary Encounters at the End of the World, shows a penguin turn and walk away from another one. As the other one stares after it, the wandering penguin begins its trek to the mountains off in the distance. It's a moment that's questioned in the documentary, and the experts in the film have something of an explanation.

Part of the documentary was shared on YouTube. In the video, Werner speaks with a scientist, Dr. David Ainley, and asks if there is "such a thing as insanity among penguins." At first glance, from a less philosophical standpoint, that might seem like what caused the penguin to go to the mountain, after all.

"Well, I've never seen a penguin bashing its head against a rock," Dr. Ainley says. However, he adds, "They do get disoriented."

Another penguin in the same documentary also veers off-course and is shown sliding on its belly with a long span of nothingness in front of it. It looks like this one also experienced some sort of confusion, similar to what the penguin going to the mountain likely experiences in the documentary.

Even though there is a scientific explanation for why the penguin goes to the mountain in the documentary and the TikTok clip, users on TikTok have shared the clip to liken it to human behavior of searching for more in the world. One comment under one of the many videos about the penguin suggested that the penguin "lost his mate" and it's trying to find her.

Someone else commented on the same video that the penguin's goal is "symbolic" for humans.

"The penguin is running towards the unknown vs staying where it's comfortable," they wrote. "He envisions something better than he's known and is chasing it. Something we should all do."

There is even a TikTok where someone came up with supposed lore for the penguin and shared an AI-generated video with creepy penguin creatures that look more like brainrot characters. So, chances are, this isn't the last you've seen or heard about this penguin.