Galapagos penguin

Spheniscus mendiculus

Description:

The Galapagos Penguin is a penguin endemic to the Galapagos Islands. It is the only penguin that lives north of the equator in the wild. It can survive due to the cool temperatures resulting from the Humboldt Current and cool waters from great depths brought up by the Cromwell Current. The Galapagos Penguin is one of the banded penguins, the other species of which live mostly on the coasts of mainland South America, and Africa.

Habitat:

Punta Vicente Roca, Galapagos

Species ID Suggestions

87 Comments (1–25)

KarenL 10 years ago

Thanks fini1 - me too!

ceejayalyssa 10 years ago

wow! very cute :)

KarenL 10 years ago

Thanks vanvliet5!

KarenL 11 years ago

Thank you Mona! And thanks Dez for featuring my spotting!

Mona Pirih 11 years ago

Awesome series !!! Love it so much.

Smith Zoo 11 years ago

Congratulations Karen! Your extraordinary spot of the Galapagos Penguin was chosen for today's International Penguin Day blog: http://blog.projectnoah.org/post/4885276...

KarenL 11 years ago

Thank you Hema & Leana!

Leana Lahom-Cristobal 11 years ago

Congrats Karen!

Hema Shah 11 years ago

Love the third picture with the crabs in the background.

KarenL 11 years ago

Thank you Tibi, Larry & Lisa!

LisaDrewel 11 years ago

and the fabulous crabs behind him/her!

LarryGraziano 11 years ago

Congrats Karen!

tibiprada 11 years ago

Lovely ... Congratulations !

KarenL 11 years ago

Thank you Peter! We were indeed very lucky to see several of these highly endangered birds, both in & out of the water. One swan past me underwater while we were snorkeling but unfortunately I wasn't fast enough to get a photo. They really do "fly" underwater!

Charles Darwin Foundation for the Galapagos 11 years ago

Great series of spottings, Karen! - A few additional facts: This is one of the most endangered bird species on Galapagos. The Charles Darwin Foundation for the Galapagos, jointly with the National Park Service, does regular censuses of the Galapagos Penguin population since 1961. They show that the total number of breeding pairs fluctuates considerably and often is way below 1,000. They breed almost exclusively on Fernandina and the west coast of Isabela where the sea is coldest and most productive. When "El Niño" hits them with warm water, which happens every 5 to 10 years, the population crashes. The Darwin Foundation and the National Park are working hard to reduce or exclude additional pressure resulting from feral cats and introduced bird malaria. - For more info on our work go to facebook.com/darwinfoundation.