Today on Animal Fact Files we’re discussing king penguins.
King penguins are the second largest living penguins falling behind their relatives the
emperor penguin. Originally, king penguins were named first and received their kingly name because
they were believed to be the largest living penguins species at the time. It wasn't until
later the larger emperor penguin was named. Oops! Though these species are similar in appearance,
there are a few differences to tell them apart. First off, king penguins are smaller
than emperor penguins. While emperors can reach 4 feet (1.2m) tall, king penguins top
out at 3 feet (91cm) in height. In weight, king penguins average 30 pounds (14kg) giving them a
slimmer appearance compared to the emperor penguin's bulky 80 plus pounds (36kg).
King penguins are also a bit more colorful. The orange on the sides of their head and along their
throat stands out stronger than the emperor penguin's pale yellow head and throat spots.
The king penguin has an orange teardrop shape on its bill compared to the emperor penguin's
yellow beak spot. King penguins also have longer bills than emperor penguins; in fact,
they have the longest of all penguin beaks! Probably the most discernible difference, however,
is in their offspring. Emperor penguins have gray and black babies while king penguins have
giant fuzzy brown chonks. In fact, king penguin chicks look so different from their parents,
they were believed to be another penguin species altogether: known as the wooly penguin!
Unlike emperor penguins which breed seasonally, king penguins breed twice every three years. Some
colonies breed every other year. A pair is monogamous through a breeding season,
though usually not after. And, also unlike emperor penguins, both king penguin parents take part in
incubating the egg. It takes just under two months before the egg hatches. The parents
swap every other week between holding the baby on their feet and foraging until the chick is
large enough to be left alone. At this point, they may go months at a time before returning
to feed their offspring. Some babies wait more than three months for their parents to
return with food! It takes about a year from hatching until molting all their brown down
before the babies are fully independent. They have the longest breeding cycle of all penguins
lasting fourteen or more months! The young king penguins won't return to breed until they're
approximately three to five years old. In the wild, king penguins can live to be 20 or older!
While emperor penguins are a truly Antarctic species,
king penguins are island dwelling in slightly warmer areas. They form colonies on rocky,
gently sloping Antarctic and subantarctic island shores as far north as New Zealand and
South America. They’ve been documented traveling over 300 miles (500km) from home to forage! They
collect their meals from the ocean. Lantern fish make up the king penguin's main diet but
they also take other fish like mackerels as well as squids and crustaceans. They can dive up to a
thousand feet (322m) in search of food and hold their breath for almost ten minutes if needed.
Predators to king penguins include leopard seals, fur seals, killer whales, skuas and
other birds. They were also hunted by humans until the practice was outlawed. Since then,
their numbers have increased and continue to increase today! There are believed to
be over two million breeding pairs of these birds alive as of this recording!
Because so many birds congregate at a single breeding sight, things can get pretty noisy.
Here are some examples of the sounds heard at a king penguin colony: (audio)
For more
facts on king penguins, check out the links below. Give a thumbs up if
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