King Penguins
Come discover Antarctic royalty. We are home to a colony of male and female king penguins, including several juveniles.
Avid belly-floppers and expert divers
The world’s second-largest penguin species can be found on shores and valleys of sub-Antarctic islands, often close to the sea. When in the water, they can eat as many as 400 fish a day, diving to depths of 304 metres. These social creatures will share in raising their young, starting with a mother and father trading the egg between them to incubate it under a flap of skin called a brood pouch.
- IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (at relatively low risk of extinction)
- Type: Bird
- Habitat: Sub-Antarctic islands and the Falkland Islands
- Diet: Carnivore – fish and squid
- Size: 78 to 88.9 centimetres
- Weight: 9.9 to 15.8 kilograms
facts about our animals
Fun Facts about King Penguins
King penguins have excellent night vision, though they primarily hunt during the day.
While king penguins moult their waterproof feathers, they will fast for up to a month.
King penguin parents will regurgitate food into the mouth of their young.
Just before hatching, a penguin chick will call to their parents from inside the egg.
A king penguin chick has a woolly down coat to keep it warm.
King penguins do not build nests.
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