Selknam (Ono)

(map)

The source for this myth is a children's book. I could find no similar story in better attested collections of Selknam folklore, which makes me suspect the story's authenticity.

At one time, people did not die; instead, they just slept awhile and woke up refreshed. After many lives, some got tired of being human and turned into rocks, clouds, animals, and such. A flood came which covered the world. People floundered around in the cold water. Some climbed onto ice floes and joined the penguins, playing and eating fish as the penguins did. In time, they turned into large penguins. When the water went down, some people went back to living as humans, but others stayed emperor penguins.

Brusca, María Cristina & Tona Wilson. When Jaguars Ate the Moon, and Other Stories About Animals and Plants of the Americas (New York: Holt, 1995), p. "E".