PENGUINS AND WHERE YOU SEE THEM

Of the 18 different penguins species all bar one are found south of the equator, the Galapagos penguin is the one exception, they spend most of their lives at sea, coming ashore only to breed and to molt.

Penguins are found breeding in the Galapagos Islands, Australia, New Zealand, the South American mainland, Africa and all around Antarctica and on the many sub-Antarctic Islands.

Here you’ll find where you will get to see each species, broken down by region:
Antarctic Peninsula (5)
Falkland Islands (5)
South Georgia (4)
Sub-Antarctic Islands (6)
Ross Sea (2)
South America (7)
Africa (1)
Tristan da Cunha and Gough Island (1)

Of the 12 species of penguin you can see on an Antarctic or Sub-Antarctic cruise (Gentoo, Adelie, Chinstrap, King, Emperor, southern-rockhopper, Macaroni, Royal, Yellow-eyed, Snares and Magellanic) you would need to take at the very least two Antarctic cruises: a Falklands, South Georgia and Antarctic Peninsula cruise, which should give you 7 species, and a Ross Sea voyage including Macquarie Island and New Zealand’s sub Antarctic Islands (including Bounty or Antipodes), which could give you the other 5 species.

You would have to be fortunate enough to see Emperor penguins whilst in the Ross Sea region.  To be sure of Emperor penguins you’d need to join a Snow Hill Island Emperor penguin cruise.

A tour in South America, including a Galapagos Islands cruise would give you another 2 species.

A trip to Phillip Island and to the South Island of New Zealand would give you another two (Little and Fjordland).

The last two, one obviously requires a trip to Cape Town (South Africa or Windhoek in Namibia) the other a visit to the extremely remote Tristan da Cunha or Gough Island

THE ANTARCTIC PENINSULA (6)

Of the five species found on the Antarctic Peninsula only three are often seen on any Antarctic Peninsula cruise, Gentoo, Chinstrap and Adelie.  Adelie’s are the least likely to be seen as they are found at fewer sites on the north of the Antarctic Peninsula.  Colonies of the above range from a hundred to many thousands of birds.

In the Weddell Sea, and on some cruises that head much further South on the West of the of the Peninsula, you have a chance to see Emperor penguins – in particular near Snow Hill Island where there is an Emperor penguin rookery.  There is one Macaroni colony on the Peninsula. Very occasionally King Penguins; often a single bird molting.

THE FALKLAND ISLANDS (5)

On the Falkland Islands you have the chance to see five different penguin species: Gentoo, southern Rock-hopper, Magellanic, Macaroni and King.

About a third of the world’s southern rock-hopper (360,000 pairs) and gentoo (120,000 pairs) penguins breed on the Falkland Islands.
Magellanic numbers are a little lower with 100,000 breeding pairs.
There are about 1,500 breeding pairs of king penguins (the population has grown over recent years) and only 50+ Macaroni’s.

SOUTH GEORGIA (4)

About 3 million Macaroni penguins make South Georgia home.  There are approximately 450,000 pairs of King penguins on South Georgia with the largest colony at St Andrew’s Bay (150,000 pairs) – other significant colonies are found at Salisbury Plain and Gold Harbour.
100,000 pairs of gentoos and approximately 6,000 pairs of chinstrap penguins round out the penguin species found on South Georgia.

ROSS SEA, AUSTRALIA AND  NEW ZEALAND SUB-ANTARCTIC ISLANDS (11)

Ross Sea – 2 species

3 million Adelie penguins are found in the Ross Sea region with a very large colony at Cape Adare.  About 240,00 Emperor penguins are found in several colonies spread over a large area.

Macquarie Island – 4 species

King (100,000+), gentoo (5,000+) and southern rock-hopper (75,000).
Endemic to Macquarie Island Royal penguin numbers are thought to be over 850,000 pairs.  The Hurd Point colony is thought to have up t6o half a million birds.

New Zealand sub-Antarctic Islands – 5 species

New Zealand’s sub-Antarctic Islands are often home to endemic species:
Yellow-eyed penguins (5-6000 birds) – Auckland and Campbell Islands
Snares Crested (50,000 birds) penguins – The Snares
Erect Crested (80,000 birds) – Antipodes and Bounty Islands

Fjordland (6,000+ birds) penguins are found on Stewart Island and the South Island of New Zealand.

Little penguins (global population maybe 500,000) – New Zealand and Australia

SOUTH AMERICAN PENGUINS (7)

South America – 7 species

Magellanic penguins are found along Chile and Argentina’s coast of Patagonia with perhaps as many as 2 million birds – one colony at Punta Tombo has an estimated 200,000 pairs.

The Humboldt penguin is found as far north as Peru and all the way down the coast of Chile.  There are perhaps 5,000 breeding pairs.

In 2010 around 90 King Penguins turned up at a place called Useless Bay, near Punta Arenas (Chile); they made there home here and return each year.

Southern Rock-hopper, Gentoo and Macaroni penguins breed on off-shore islands around Chile and Argentina

Galapagos Penguins are, as you might guess, endemic to the Galapagos Islands are are the most northerly breeding species of penguin.  There are thought to be up to 2,000 individuals breeding on two Islands;  Isabela and Ferdandina (although they are occasionally seen on Floreana, Santiago and Bartolome).

TRISTAN da CUNHA & GOUGH ISLAND (1)

Tristan de Cunha and Gough Island
The Northern Rock-hopper is found on the above islands (also on Amsterdam and St Paul).  There are approximately 270,000 breeding pairs.

AFRICA (1)

Africa 1 Penguin 

The African or Jackass (after its call resembling a braying donkey) is found on the coast of South Africa and Namibia there are believed to be 20,000 birds.