Scientific Classification
- Common Name
- yellow-eyed penguin
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Sphenisciformes
- Family
- Spheniscidae
- Genus Species
- Megadyptes antipodes
Fast Facts
- Description
- As their name implies, yellow-eyed penguins have pale yellow eyes. Their head is also pale yellow. A band of bright yellow extends from their eyes around the back of the head.
- Size
- Up to 76 cm (30 in.)
- Weight
- Up to 6 kg (3 lbs.)
- Diet
- Fishes and squids
- Incubation
- 39 to 51 days
- Clutch Size
- 2 eggs
- Sexual Maturity
- Males: 4 to 5 years; females: 2 to 3 years
- Life Span
- 15 to 20 years
- Range
- Southeast New Zealand
- Habitat
- Areas with dense vegetation near the coast.
- Population
- Global: estimated 5,930 to 6,970 mature individuals
- Status
- IUCN: Endangered
CITES: Not listed
USFWS: Not listed
Fun Facts
Yellow-eyed penguins lay two eggs and parents typically raise both chicks, which can be nearly equal in size.
The voice of the yellow-eyed penguin is semi-musical when compared to other penguin calls.
For more information about penguins, explore the Penguin InfoBook.
Ecology and Conservation
Introduced predators such as cats, stoat and ferrets have impacted yellow-eyed penguin populations. Habitat degradation, avian malaria, food shortages due to sea temperature changes, human disturbances, drowning in fishing nets, and accidental fires are all threats to yellow-eyed penguins.
All 18 penguin species are legally protected from hunting and egg collecting. The Antarctic Treaty of 1959 makes it illegal to harm, or in any way interfere with, a penguin or its eggs. Every penguin specimen collected with a permit must be approved by and reported to the Scientific Committee for Antarctic Research (SCAR). Penguins are vulnerable to habitat destruction, overfishing of primary food sources, ecological disasters such as oil spills, pollution such as trash in the ocean, and human encroachment into nesting areas.
Bibliography
BirdLife International (2006) Species factsheet: Megadyptes antipodes. Downloaded from birdlife.org
Coats, Judith. Penguins: Flightless Birds of the Southern Hemisphere. SeaWorld Education Department, 2001.
Nuzzolo, Debbie. Penguin March. SeaWorld Education Department, 2002.
Yellow_Eyed_Penguin._(Megadyptes_antipodes)_(9868019174).jpg. Source: Wikimedia Commons. Image by: Bernard Spragg. Year Created: 3 December 2011. Website: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Yellow_Eyed_Penguin._(Megadyptes_antipodes)_(9868019174).jpg. License: CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain.
