Where do Penguins Live

 

Where do Penguins Live

Penguins are a group of aquatic flightless birds. All the penguins do not live in cold countries. Out of 17 species, a few live in the Antarctica but outside of Antarctica, they live on rocky coastlines or desert regions. Every continent in the Southern Hemisphere is home to penguins. Penguins cannot be found in the South Pole or Arctic.

17 different species of penguins are found in the world. They are

·       Adelie Penguin

·       African Penguin

·       Chinstrap Penguin

·       Emperor Penguin

·       Erect-Crested

·       Fiordland Penguin

·       Galapagos Penguin

·       Gentoo Penguin

·       Humboldt Penguin

·       King Penguin

·       Little Penguin

·       Macaroni Penguin

·       Magellanic Penguin

·       Rockhopper Penguin

·       Royal Penguin

·       Snares Penguin

·       Yellow-eyed Penguin

Adelie Penguin

Adelie penguins live in the Antarctic continent. From October to February, Adelie penguins breed on shores around the Antarctic continent, South Shetland, Bouvetoya Islands, South Sandwich and South Orkney.

What Do Penguins Eat

African Penguin

African penguins are native to South Africa. They are found along the Western coast and islands between South Africa and Namibia. They also found in Boulders Beach.

Chinstrap Penguin

Chinstrap penguins live along the coast of Antarctic Peninsula on South Georgia, South Shetland, South Orkney, South Sandwich Islands. They are also found in a small number on Peter-ɪ Island, Bouvetoya, Balleny Islands.

Emperor Penguin

Emperor penguin is the most tallest and as well as heaviest penguin species. They are native to Antarctica. Emperor penguin is only species that breads during the Antarctic winter. They are found on Snow Island, near the northern tip of the Peninsula, Cape Washington, Coulman Island in Victoria Land, Halley Bay, Cape Colbeck. Around 35% of Emperor penguins live on the north of Antarctic Circle.

Erect-crested Penguin

Erect-crested penguins live in Southern New Zealand. Bounty and Antipodes Islands are the main breeding ground of Erect-crested penguin. They are found on the east coast of the South Island most summers. A few still breads on Auckland Islands and also on Campbell Island.

Fiordland Penguin  

The Fireland Penguins are native to New Zealand and are also known as the New Zealand Crest Penguins. Currently they are found in the cold rainforest, along the west coast of South Island, Stewart Island.

Galapagos Penguin

Galapagos penguin is only penguin species that lives north of the equator. Galapagos penguin is restricted to the Galapagos Islands. They breed on Isabela Island, Fernandina Island and may be Bartholomew. A small number of Galapagos penguins are found on Santiago Island, northern Santa Cruz and Floreana. 90% of Galapagos penguins live on Fernandina Island and west coast of Isabela Island.

Gentoo Penguin

Gentoo Penguins live in Antarctic Peninsula and sub- Antarctic Islands. They are found on South Georgia, South Sandwich, Falkland Islands, South Orkney, South Shetland, Marino, Prince Edward Island, Kerguelen. A small number of Gentoo penguins are found on Macquarie Island, Heard Islands, Crozet Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula.

Humboldt Penguin

Humboldt penguin is a South American penguin. They are found mainly in the Penguino de Humboldt National Reserve in the North of Chile and coastal areas of Chile and Peru. They are endemic to the Humboldt Current which runs along the west coast of South America from Chile to Peru, discovered by Alexander von Humboldt. Their colonies are found near Puerto Montt.

King Penguin

After the Emperor penguin, King penguin is the second largest penguin. King penguin lives in sub-Antarctic islands between 45° and 55°S. They are restricted to the sub- Antarctic belt. They are also found on Falkland Island, South Georgia, Crozet Island, Prince Edward Island, South Indian Ocean and at Macquarie Island.

Little Penguin

Little penguins live in coastal areas of southern Australia and New Zealand. In Australia, they are found from Port Stephens in northern New South Wales. Sometimes foraging penguins are seen on Southport Queensland and Shark Bay in Western Australia. In New Zealand, the population of little penguins have been decreasing but some new colonies have been established in urban areas. They are only found on Banks Peninsula and nearby Motunau Island and Wellington Harbour on Matiu Island.

A large number of penguins live in Victoria at Phillip Island. As of 2020 there are living 1400 penguins. A small number of penguins live in London Arch, The Twelve Apostles along the Great Ocean Road, Wilson’s Promontory and Gabo Island.

Macaroni Penguin

Macaroni penguins live in the Sub-Antarctic and also found in the Antarctic Peninsula. They live in southern Chile, Falkland Islands, South Georgia, South Sandwich Islands and South Orkney Island. Their breeding colonies are also found Antarctica and Antarctic Peninsula, South Shetland Islands, Marino Islands, Kerguelen Islands, Prince Edward Islands, Heard Island etc.

Magellanic Penguin

Magellanic penguins live in Chile as well as coastal Patagonia Argentina and the Falkland Islands and also found as far north as Espirito Santo. A large breeding colony is also found at Punta Tombo, a peninsula into the Atlantic Ocean.

Rockhopper Penguin

Rockhopper penguins live from Antarctic front to the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Rockhopper penguin is divided into three sub-species; Southern Rockhopper penguin, Eastern Rockhopper penguin and Northern Rockhopper penguin.

Northern Rockhopper penguin lives on the islands of Gough and Tristan da Cunha in the Atlantic Ocean and Manchester and St. Paul in the Indian Ocean.

Southern Rockhopper penguins are found on the Falkland Islands, Argentina and Chile. Their breeding colonies are around Cape Horn in South America and Prince Edward Islands, Marion Island, Crozet Islands, Campbell Island, Heard Islands in the Southern Indian Ocean.

Eastern Rockhopper penguins live on Campbell Island, New Zealand.

One of the largest populations of Southern Rockhopper penguin is found on the Falkland Islands.

Royal Penguin

Royal penguins live on the sub- Antarctic Macquarie Island and adjacent islands. They breed on Australia’s Macquarie Island and Bishop and Clerk Islands. During winter, Royal penguins migrate Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand.

Snares Penguin

Snares penguins are found in New Zealand and the Snares Islands which are a small group of islands off the coast of southern New Zealand. Occasionally, they are found on the coast of Tasmania, Southern Australia, the Chatham Islands, Stewart Island and the Southern New Zealand mainland.

Yellow-eyed Penguin

The Yellow-eyed Penguin or hoiho lives only in New Zealand. The breeding colonies are found on the South-east coast of the South Island, Stewart Island, the Sub-Antarctic Auckland, Maungahuka and Campbell Islands Motu Thupuka. The four major breeding regions are Banks Peninsula, North Otago, Otago Peninsula and Catlins. They live in coast forest, scrub or dense flax.

Almost all types of penguins are found in the Southern Hemisphere but they are not found only in Antarctica. A few species of penguins are found there. Several species live in the temperate zone. Only Galapagos penguin lives near equator. Large species of penguins are found in colder regions but the smaller species are generally found in temperate or tropical climates.