Follow us on:
  • About
    • History
    • Collections
    • Uses
    • Meet the staff
    • Curator
  • On Display
    • Floor plan
    • Animal finder >
      • By Location
      • By Animal group >
        • Vertebrates
        • Invertebrates
    • Keys and information sheets >
      • Evolution and adaptation
      • Taxonomy
      • Diet
      • Social organisation and mating system
      • Ecosystems and habitats
  • Activities
  • Visit us
    • Tours
    • School visits
    • Find us
    • Get involved
  • Get in touch
    • Visitor feedback

African Penguin

Spheniscus demersus


Where is it found?

Picture
Lives on the coast

Diet and foraging method

Eats meat
Dives underwater to hunt for fish such as anchovies and sardines
Eats fish
Eats crustaceans
Eats squid and other cephalopods

Key adaptations

Well adapted for swimming, with a streamlined body and wings adapted into flippers. 
Good camouflage from above (in the air) or below (in the sea), by having a dark back and a white front.  
Special muscles at the base of their feathers hold them tight against the body when swimming to stay waterproof, and stand up when outside the water to trap an insulating layer of air.

Social organisation and mating system

Picture
Live in colonies
Picture
Picture
Form socially monogamous pairs for breeding

Did you know that...?

They sound like donkeys when communicating with each other.

Taxonomy

Picture

Sources:

Maps from: http://species.mol.org/species/
"African penguin near Boulders Beach" by Paul Mannix - African penguin, near Boulders Beach, South Africa. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:African_penguin_near_Boulders_Beach.jpg#/media/File:African_penguin_near_Boulders_Beach.jpg
"Spheniscus demersus Jackass penguins" by Andrew massyn - Own work. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Spheniscus_demersus_Jackass_penguins.jpg#/media/File:Spheniscus_demersus_Jackass_penguins.jpg
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.