King Penguins: How Do They Spot Their Chicks?

King penguins form some of the largest breeding colonies in the world, with gatherings of over 100,000 pairs. These colonies are found across the subantarctic and Southern Ocean north of 60°S, with large populations on Iles Crozet, Iles Kerguelen, and South Georgia. King penguins breed on subantarctic islands at the northern reaches of Antarctica, South Georgia, southern Argentina, and other temperate islands of the region. King penguins face threats from leopard seals, orcas, and Antarctic fur seals, while their chicks are vulnerable to seabird predators like giant petrels and skuas. So, how do king penguins identify their chicks in these huge colonies?

King penguin colonies can have hundreds of thousands of pairs

King penguins are the second-largest species of penguin, smaller than but similar in appearance to the emperor penguin. They are known to form some of the largest breeding colonies in the world. Colonies can have hundreds of thousands of pairs, with one colony in Salisbury Plain on South Georgia Island hosting over 100,000 pairs. Another colony in South Georgia is estimated to have more than 200,000 birds. Colonies can grow to as many as 600,000 penguins, which is roughly the population of Washington DC.

King penguins breed on subantarctic islands at the northern reaches of Antarctica, South Georgia, southern Argentina, and other temperate islands in the region. They also breed on Macquarie Island in the Southern Ocean and the Falkland Islands. They form large colonies when they leave the sea and go to breeding grounds during the breeding season. The breeding season typically lasts from September to November, and colonies will have occupants all year round due to the long maturity cycle of king penguins.

King penguins are serially monogamous, with both parents sharing all hatching and rearing duties. They take turns incubating their egg by balancing it on their feet and covering it with their stomach. They also take turns foraging for food to sustain themselves and their chick. After hatching, chicks remain dependent on their parents for over a year. They gather in large groups called crèches, which help ward off predatory birds and conserve body heat while their parents are away.

King penguin chicks look very different from mature king penguins. They have fluffy, brown coats that keep them warm through the winter months. As they mature, they develop a light covering of brown down, which gradually becomes longer and slightly paler. After moulting their brown juvenile plumage, king chicks resemble adults but are less colourful.

King penguins do not build nests

King penguins are the second-largest species of penguin, smaller than but similar in appearance to the emperor penguin. They mainly eat lanternfish, squid, and krill, and their predators include giant petrels, skuas, the snowy sheathbill, the leopard seal, and the orca.

King penguins breed on subantarctic islands at the northern reaches of Antarctica, South Georgia, southern Argentina, and other temperate islands in the region. They also live on Macquarie Island in the Southern Ocean and the Falkland Islands.

King penguins are serially monogamous, with both parents sharing all hatching and rearing duties. They first breed when they are around three years old, although the average age of first breeding is around 5–6 years. The female lays a single egg that is incubated by the male during the long Antarctic winter. The egg is incubated for around 55 days, with both birds sharing incubation in shifts of 6–18 days each.

After the female lays the egg, she returns to the ocean to feed and replenish her body weight. The male sits on the egg until she returns, and they then take turns incubating until the egg hatches. The egg cannot be left unguarded due to the cold weather and the threat of predators like skuas, which are always on the lookout for unguarded eggs.

King penguin chicks look very different from mature king penguins

In contrast, adult king penguins have a grizzled sooty-greyish back, with colourful markings, including a bright orange cheek patch and yellow-orange plumage on the upper chest. They stand at 70-100 cm tall and weigh 9.3-18 kg. The average weight of adults from Marion Island was 12.4 kg for males and 11.1 kg for females.

King penguin chicks, on the other hand, are smaller and brown, with a long bill and heavy dark brown down. They are born with only a thin covering of down and are entirely dependent on their parents for food and warmth. It takes 14-16 months for king penguin chicks to become fully independent, and during this time, they go through three stages of development. Firstly, they experience an initial growth spurt, reaching almost full size but still covered in brown down. Then, they go through a period of fasting and weight loss during the winter. Finally, they have a second growth spurt and moult before fledging.

Despite these physical differences, king penguin parents can always find their chicks in the massive crèches. Chicks and parents can immediately recognize one another’s squawks and whistles, even after being apart for almost a month.

King penguin parents take turns incubating their egg and hunting

King penguins are serially monogamous, with both parents sharing all hatching and rearing duties. They breed when they are around three years old, although the average age of first breeding is around 5–6 years. The female lays a single egg, which is incubated by the male during the long Antarctic winter. The incubation period lasts 55 to 65 days, with both parents taking turns to balance the egg on their feet, under a specially formed bulge of skin, in shifts of 6 to 18 days each. During their shift, the incubating parent does not eat.

While one parent incubates, the other forages at sea, hunting lanternfish, squid, and krill, which make up about 80% of their diet. They swim and dive very well, with the ability to swim at 5 mph for hours and dive hundreds of feet deep. They go to great lengths to care for their young, taking foraging trips of one to three weeks and averaging over 650 km per trip.

Once the chick hatches, the parents continue to take turns hunting until the chick is six weeks old. After 40 days, the chick will join a crèche, a small community of other chicks, where they rely on each other for warmth and protection from predators while learning to survive on their own.

King penguin chicks band together to form groups called crèches

King penguins form huge colonies, with some colonies having hundreds of thousands of breeding pairs each summer. They breed on subantarctic islands at the northern reaches of Antarctica, South Georgia, southern Argentina, and other temperate islands in the region. They also breed on Macquarie Island in the Southern Ocean and the Falkland Islands.

King penguins lay their eggs directly on the ground, and both parents take turns incubating the egg and hunting for food. After the chick hatches, the parents continue taking turns to hunt until the chick is six weeks old. At this point, the chick is large enough that it no longer needs the parent to keep it warm, and it requires more food, so both parents will hunt while the chicks gather in groups called crèches.

A crèche is a group of chicks that band together for safety in numbers and warmth while their parents are away. King penguin chicks are brown, and they remain this colour until their first moult, when they get their adult plumage. The crèche, or group, formation is a miniaturised version of the larger adult penguin huddle. Gathering in large groups helps ward off predatory birds like skuas, sheathbills, and other penguins, and also helps the chicks stay warm.

King penguin chicks remain in the crèche until they are around 16 months old, at which point they become fully independent.

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