WATCH: This Robotic Penguin Chick is Doing Undercover Work in Antarctica

Photo Credit: YouTubeIf you’re going to build a robotic spy, you might as well make it a cutie — especially if it needs to go incognito in crowds of adorable penguin chicks and their parents.

Researchers report in Nature Methods that they’ve created a new tool for penguin research: A furry fake penguin perched atop a remote-controlled rover.

A fiberglass penguin seemed to frighten the penguins, but the final (fuzzier) version passed muster.