African PenguinSpheniscus demersusThe only penguin regularly found within its range. A pudgy, flightless, black-and-white seabird with wings modified into flippers. Uncommon and declining, but still easily seen at well-known breeding colonies. It is extremely ungainly on land but is a supreme swimmer in the open ocean, where individuals dive down as far as 60 m in pursuit of small schooling fish. Juveniles are covered in flufflike down, and immatures have a white throat and frequently look scruffy as they molt. Call is a repeated, donkey-like braying: “haaaaaaahh, haaaaaaahh”.Spheniscidae bird family
Order Sphenisciformes · 7 selected species
Browse verified BirdLens profiles selected for complete taxonomy, substantial descriptive coverage, and visual evidence. Open a species to compare its identification notes, distribution, behavior, sounds, and maps.
African PenguinSpheniscus demersusThe only penguin regularly found within its range. A pudgy, flightless, black-and-white seabird with wings modified into flippers. Uncommon and declining, but still easily seen at well-known breeding colonies. It is extremely ungainly on land but is a supreme swimmer in the open ocean, where individuals dive down as far as 60 m in pursuit of small schooling fish. Juveniles are covered in flufflike down, and immatures have a white throat and frequently look scruffy as they molt. Call is a repeated, donkey-like braying: “haaaaaaahh, haaaaaaahh”.
Emperor PenguinAptenodytes forsteriTruly a royal and commanding presence, this largest of the penguins is seldom seen away from Antarctica and its surrounding seas, though young birds do disperse beyond the pack ice. Immense size and unique coloration readily distinguish this species from most other penguins; King Penguin is similar in patterning, but is smaller, longer-billed, less bulky overall, and has brighter and more extensive orange markings on the head. Breeds in immense colonies on the ice, with males famously spending months tending to the egg. Gives impressive trumpeting cries, especially during courtship.
Humboldt PenguinSpheniscus humboldtiUncommon and local; breeds in colonies along the coast of Peru and Chile, where it nests in underground burrows. The only penguin in most of its range, but some overlap in central Chile with similar Magellanic Penguin of colder southern waters. Adult Humboldt is distinguished by a big pink patch at the base of the bill and a single black breast band. Immature Humboldt is very similar to Magellanic Penguin and is not always safely identified in the field, but immature usually shows big pink bill base recalling adult.
Macaroni PenguinEudyptes chrysolophusMedium-sized bulky penguin with a bulbous red bill and a dash of stiff orange “hair.” Disappointingly, named for the resemblance of its spiffy, “fashionable” crest to the hairstyle of fashionable youth, or “macaronis”, and not for the pasta-sauce-orange color of the crest itself. Similar to Southern Rockhopper Penguin, but note Macaroni’s larger size, much more heavy build, chunkier bill, and a droopier, more orange, crest. Breeds in noisy colonies on rocky islands, across a wide area of the Subantarctic and the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula.
Snares PenguinEudyptes robustusMedium-sized crested penguin, endemic to New Zealand. Note the thin, vivid yellow eyebrow that droops behind the eye to form a bushy tufted crest. Also look for prominent pale pink skin at the base of its chunky red bill. Breeds in colonies only on the Snare Islands. Adults disperse widely in winter. Vagrants recorded molting around South, Stewart, Chatham, and Subantarctic Islands. Forages in small groups at sea. Distinguished from Fiordland Penguin by conspicuous pale pink skin at the base of the larger bill and the lack of white cheek stripes. Told apart from Erect-crested Penguin by crest beginning toward the top of the bill and splaying out more dramatically. Rockhopper Penguin is smaller.
Yellow-eyed PenguinMegadyptes antipodesA tall, stocky penguin endemic to New Zealand. Note the conspicuous soft, yellow uncrested band that stretches across the back of the head to circle each distinctly yellow eye. Juveniles have paler eyes, lack the yellow band, and are paler at the back of the head. Breeds on the southeast coastline of the South Island and on Stewart, Codfish, Campbell, and Auckland Islands. Feeds alone at sea, but can form small groups in the non-breeding season. Adults sedentary at colony sites. Juveniles sometimes encountered as stragglers, dispersing as far north as the Bay of Plenty.Yellow-eyed PenguinMegadyptes antipodesA tall, stocky penguin endemic to New Zealand. Note the conspicuous soft, yellow uncrested band that stretches across the back of the head to circle each distinctly yellow eye. Juveniles have paler eyes, lack the yellow band, and are paler at the back of the head. Breeds on the southeast coastline of the South Island and on Stewart, Codfish, Campbell, and Auckland Islands. Feeds alone at sea, but can form small groups in the non-breeding season. Adults sedentary at colony sites. Juveniles sometimes encountered as stragglers, dispersing as far north as the Bay of Plenty.