TOPSFIELD -- Area children might not be familiar with the name Dyan deNapoli. But many of them know her, know her work | and especially her favorite animal.

That's because deNapoli is better known to her spectators as "The Penguin Lady," the name coined for her educational enrichment programs.

DeNapoli recently brought her giant inflatable Emperor penguin, her lively photo presentation, and a plethora of stuffed penguins and predators to the Topsfield Town Library for an hour of laughs and learning.

At the beginning of her talk, deNapoli set a timer at the front of the room. Twenty-two minutes later, the timer's bell startled everyone.

DeNapoli had made it through almost half of her presentation in the time a penguin could remain underwater without coming up for air.

"That was one breath!" she said.

The Penguin Lady has undoubtedly earned her moniker. She challenged the families in the audience to multiple-choice questions about penguin behavior, with most of the possible answers eliciting giggles from the crowd.

"How do penguins hide from their predators?" deNapoli asked as the PowerPoint behind her displayed photographs of the bird. "Do they use their feathers, squirt ink like an octopus or dress like a nun?"

Hands shot up throughout the room, and she chose a few children to take a crack at the question. Then she shared with the children that penguins use a tactic called counter shading: When they swim through the ocean, their white underbellies blend in with the ice or light around them, and their dark backs blend in with the black ocean deep.

The children were also delighted to learn that to keep their nests clean, penguins can shoot their "guano," a scientific euphemism for excrement, up to 5 feet.

The penguins has always been an intriguing creature for animal lovers. But in recent years, deNapoli has seen penguins go from a popular aquarium attraction to silver screen stars and a pop culture phenomenon.

"Penguins are definitely in the limelight, with movies like 'Happy Feet' and 'March of the Penguins,' and books like 'Tacky the Penguin.'" she said. "I also think global-warming issues and how they're affecting penguins is bringing back some interest."

For eight years, deNapoli was a senior penguin aquarist at the New England Aquarium, where she co-managed the colony of 69 penguins. She has taken her love of penguins all over the world, traveling to New Zealand, Chile, Antarctica and other harsh climates to study the feathered fowl. In June 2000, she said, she experienced the highlight of her career when she worked as a rehabilitation manager at a South African oil spill. Some 20,000 penguins were slicked in oil, and the international relief effort she was part of rescued 91 percent of them. This story is the subject of one of her specific educational programs, called "Penguin Rescue."

After spending so much time studying penguins, deNapoli, who lives in Georgetown, found her calling as a teacher. She has taken her expertise to every age group | from children to seniors.

"I've worked with penguins for 10 years, and I've learned a lot about them. They're unique birds, and I enjoy sharing what I know with kids and adults. I love that light in their eye."

About 30 children and parents filled the library's meeting room, and they were eager to answer deNapoli's questions as well as to ask some of their own.

Paul Roach, an 8-year-old from Topsfield, sat on the floor with his 4-year-old brother, Charlie, carefully folding a sheet of white and black paper into an origami penguin. Many children stayed after the presentation to learn the craft from The Penguin Lady.

Paul was one of the children who answered one of the questions correctly during the presentation and got to take home a miniature stuffed penguin.

"The questions were interesting and they were fun to answer, and I liked the prizes," he said.