King Penguin

Name: King Penguin (Aptenodytes patagonicus)

Height: 70-100 cm

Weight: 10-16 kg

Location: Sub-Antarctic

Conservation status: Least Concern

Diet: Small fish, squid, small crustaceans

Appearance: Black, white belly, orange-red cheeks and bill, golden yellow high on neck area

How do King Penguins hunt?

King Penguins dive to depths over 100 metres, sometimes reaching over 300 metres. They can stay underwater for up to 10 minutes, usually around 5 minutes, searching the seabed for prey.

Are King Penguins social?

King Penguins form massive colonies during mating season. A colony on South Georgia has over 200,000 birds.

How fast can King Penguins move?

King Penguins swim at speeds between 5 and 10 km per hour. On land, they walk and toboggan rather than hop.

What are King Penguin mating rituals like?

King Penguins reach sexual maturity at 3 years but typically breed around age 6. They are "serially monogamous," mating with one partner per season but often finding a new mate the next year.

The mating season starts with a return to land from the sea. From September to November, they moult and mate. They return to the sea for about 3 weeks before the female lays a single egg weighing around 300 grams. Parents take turns incubating the egg for 1 to 2.5 weeks while the other hunts.

The egg hatches in 50-60 days. The chick is helpless and must be kept warm and fed by the parents, who take turns hunting and caring for the chick. This phase lasts up to 40 days. The chick then joins a crèche, a sub-community of chicks, for warmth and protection while growing and learning to survive.

How long do King Penguins live?

King Penguins can live up to 25 years in the wild.

How many King Penguins are there today?

There are an estimated 2.2 million breeding pairs of King Penguins worldwide.

Do King Penguins have any natural predators?

King Penguin chicks and eggs are preyed upon by sea birds like the Skua and Snowy Sheathbill. Adults can fall victim to Seals and Killer Whales.

8 Killer King Penguin Facts

• King Penguins are the 2nd largest penguin species.
• Their birth to maturity cycle takes 14-16 months, longer than other penguins.
• This extended cycle ensures plenty of fish when the young start hunting.
• The King Penguin is featured on the emblem of Edinburgh Zoo, Scotland.
• Early explorers mistook King Penguin chicks for a separate species due to their brown, fuzzy appearance.
• King Penguin colonies are inhabited year-round due to their long maturity cycle.
• They don't build nests but carry their egg on their feet.
• Young King Penguins don't return to their colony until they are at least 3 years old and ready to mate.