Do you have tickets to your local aquarium? You might after reading these ten facts about Magellanic Penguins! These birds are easily identified by their black-and-white colorings and seafood diet. They are migratory birds living in South America. These penguins sure are an impressive species!
10 Amazing Facts about Magellanic Penguins
1. Magellanic Penguins are easily identified by their black-and-white colorings.
Magellanic Penguins have thick black color, black backs, black wings, and a black strip on their bellies. They have white eyebrows that extend below their chins, mostly white bellies, and a strip of white behind their wings. They also have an area of pink skin around their eyes and at the base of their bill.
2. The Magellanic Penguin lives along the coast of southern South America.
These penguins reside along the coast of Chile and Argentina. They are marine animals who nest on beaches, sand dunes, clay hills, forests, or grassy slopes.
3. Magellanic Penguins are migratory birds.
These penguins migrate North from April to August, to their breeding places for the fall and winter. A few wandering penguins have been spotted in El Salvador, New Zealand, and Australia.
4. The Magellanic Penguin loves to eat fish!
Magellanic Penguins are seafood lovers, eating mainly schooling fish. They also eat squid, sprat, and a variety of other fish. Their diet tends to change based on their location and breeding stages.
5. Magellanic Penguins have special feeding habits for breeding.
When Magellanic Penguins are raising their chicks, they make foraging trips at night for up to 14 hours. They also seem to eat more lobster and squid when they are keeping the eggs warm for hatching.
6. The Magellanic Penguin has special noises for land and sea.
When on land, these penguins use loud braying sounds. When they are out at sea, they use a single “haw” note to contact each other!
7. Magellanic Penguins make nests for their eggs.
The Magellanic Penguin will make nests in burrows that can get up to 2 meters long. Sometimes they’ll make their nests under shade, or cover them with feathers or vegetation for protection. Both parents help keep the eggs warm!
8. Baby Magellanic Penguins first hatch with light grey feathers.
When they first hatch, these baby penguins have light grey feathers, which get darker as they mature. Their wings are ready for use after about 80 days! They are considered mature once they reach 4-6 years of age.
9. Magellanic Penguins are considered near threatened.
This means that these penguins are not quite threatened, but they will be soon if their numbers don’t increase. The population of penguins in each colony varies from place to place, but it seems their numbers are decreasing.
10. Magellanic Penguins have many threat factors!
Magellanic Penguins are threatened by many things. Some of these include large commercial fishing, oil pollution, and predators both on land and at sea.
Ornithology
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