African Penguin

More Information

Physical Description

African penguins are a smaller penguin species, standing about 18 inches tall and weighing around seven pounds. They use strong, flipper-like wings to propel themselves through the water and webbed feet to steer. Dense bones help them conserve energy while swimming, and backward-facing spines across their tongue help them catch prey. While in water, their iconic black-and-white plumage camouflages them from prey and predators alike: from above, their black feathers fade into the ocean, and from below, their white feathers blend into the sky.

Interesting Fact 1

Young African penguins have gray-blue feathers that darken to black within three years after hatching.

Interesting Fact 2

Mating penguins often stay together for life, with breeding pairs in a flock producing offspring at various times. This leads to colonies having eggs and chicks at various stages of development.

Interesting Fact 3

African penguins have several heat-regulating adaptations, including patches of exposed skin near their eyes through which blood circulates and cools down, as well as special muscles that push feathers outward to release trapped heat.