Galapagos penguin

The Galápagos penguin (Spheniscus mendiculus) is a penguin endemic to the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador. It is the only penguin found north of the equator.[2] Most inhabit Fernandina Island and the west coast of Isabela Island. The cool waters of the Humboldt and Cromwell Currents allow it to survive despite the tropical latitude. The Galápagos penguin is one of the banded penguins, the other species of which live mostly on the coasts of Africa and mainland South America. It is one of the smallest species of penguin in the world. Because of their warm environment, Galápagos penguins have developed techniques to stay cool. The feathers on their back, flippers, and head are black, and they have a white belly and a stripe looping from their eyes down to their neck and chin. Each penguin keeps only one mate, and breeds year-round. Their nests are typically in caves and crevices as protection against predators and the harsh environment. The Galápagos penguin has a lifespan of about 15 to 20 years, but due to predation, life expectancy in the wild could be significantly reduced.

Galápagos penguin
Male swimming on Isabela Island off Moreno Point, Galapagos Islands
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Sphenisciformes
Family: Spheniscidae
Genus: Spheniscus
Species:
S. mendiculus
Binomial name
Spheniscus mendiculus
Sundevall, 1871
Distribution of the Galápagos penguin

Description

The average Galápagos penguin is 49–50 centimetres (19–20 in) tall and weighs around 2.5–4.5 kilograms (5.5–9.9 lb).[3] It is the second smallest species of penguin, after the little penguin. Females are usually smaller than males. Galápagos penguins have a black head with a white border running from behind the eye, around the black ear coverts and chin, to join on the throat. The top of the beaks are black and fade into pink on the bottom.[4] They have two black bands across the breast that connect to the back, the lower band extending down the flanks to the thigh.[5] Juveniles differ in having a wholly dark head, grayer on side and chin, and no breast band.[4]

Distribution

Ninety percent of Galápagos penguins live on Fernandina Island and the west coast of Isabela Island, in the western part of the archipelago, but small populations also occur on Santiago, Bartolomé, northern Santa Cruz, and Floreana.[6] The northern tip of Isabela crosses the equator, meaning that some Galápagos penguins live in the northern hemisphere, the only penguins to do so.

Ecology and behavior

The penguins are confined to the archipelago, foraging in the cool Cromwell Current during the day and returning to the land at night. They eat small schooling fish, mainly mullet and sardines, and sometimes crustaceans. They normally range only a few kilometers from their breeding sites, depending on the cold, nutrient-rich currents to bring them food.

Air temperatures in the Galápagos remain in the range 15–28 °C (59–82 °F). During El Niño seasons, the penguins defer breeding because their food becomes less abundant; this makes the chances of raising offspring successfully unfavorable compared to the chances of dying in the attempt. This was especially detrimental during the 1982-83 El Niño, where a decline in population of 77% was observed.[7] The penguins usually breed when the sea surface temperature is below 25 °C (77 °F). The strong tropical sun is problematic for this species. Their primary means of cooling off is going in the water, but other behavioral adaptations for thermoregulation come into play when they must remain on land. One method involves stretching out their flippers and hunching forward to keep the sun from shining on their feet, which exchange heat rapidly because they have high blood flow and lack insulation. Another method is to pant, using evaporation to cool the throat and airways. Galápagos penguins protect their eggs and chicks from the hot sun by keeping them in deep crevices in the rocks.

  • Penguin on land
  • Skeleton

Breeding
Juvenile before it has banding markings

Galápagos penguins are a monogamous species, each pair mating for life.[8] There are fewer than 1,000 breeding pairs of Galápagos penguins in the world.[9] After completing courtship, with rituals including bill dueling, flipper patting, and mutual preening, the pair will build and maintain a nest.[5] Most nests are seen between May and July because both quantity of food and climate conditions are typically most optimal. The nests are made within 50 metres (160 ft) of the water on the shore. Adults stay near the breeding area during the year with their mate. It lays one or two eggs in places such as caves and crevices, protected from direct sunlight, which can cause the eggs to overheat.[8] Incubation takes 38–40 days, with both parents incubating.[10] One parent will always stay with the eggs or young chicks while the other may be absent for several days to feed.[11] A pair usually rears only one chick. Galápagos penguins will molt before they breed, and are the only penguins to do this twice a year. Molting takes up to 15 days to complete.[4] They do this for their own safety, as food availability in the Galápagos is typically unpredictable.[12] If there is not enough food available, they may abandon the nest.

It takes about 60-65 days for the chicks to become independent.[10] Newly hatched chicks have downy feathers that do not become waterproof until the chicks grow into juveniles.[12] The juvenile plumage, attained by thirty days after a chick hatches, is dark brown or gray above and white below. These feathers are mainly needed to protect the chicks from the strong sun rather than keep them warm.

Bermudian naturalist Louis L. Mowbray was the first to successfully breed the Galápagos penguins in captivity.[13]

Predators and threats

Galápagos penguins have a lifespan ranging from 15 to 20 years, but because of environmental factors and predation, their life expectancy is reduced.[3] They are listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as Endangered, and as of 2018 there are around 1,200 mature penguins left.[14] It is currently the rarest penguin species (a status often falsely attributed to the yellow-eyed penguin). Population levels are influenced by the effects of the El Niño Southern Oscillation, which reduces the availability of shoaling fish, leading to low reproduction or starvation.[15] The population underwent an alarming decline of around 60% in the 1980s and 1990s due to El Niño events, but is slowly recovering.[16]

Because of the Galápagos penguin's small size, it has many predators. On Isabela Island, humans may be contributing to the decline of this species due to introduced cats, dogs, and rats which attack penguins and destroy their nests.[8] Other threats on land include crabs, snakes, rice rats, Galapagos hawks, and short-eared owls.[5] While in the water, predators include sharks, fur seals, and sea lions.[10][17] They also face the hazards of unreliable food resources and volcanic activity.[18] Illegal fishing activity may interrupt the penguins' nesting, and they are often caught in fishing nets by mistake. Other factors include oil pollution, depletion of fish stocks, and avian malaria.[15]

References
  1. BirdLife International (2012). "Spheniscus mendiculus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2012. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
  2. "World Wide Fund for Nature - Galapagos Penguin Facts". World Wide Fund for Nature.
  3. "Galapagos Penguin". AZ Animals. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  4. Penguins-World. "Galapagos Penguin - Penguin Facts and Information". Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  5. Wahlstrom, Joshua. "Spheniscus mendiculus (Galapagos penguin)". Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  6. "Galapagos Penguin Species". Galapagos Conservation Trust. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  7. Quiroz, Roderick S. (1983). "The Climate of the "El Niño" Winter of 1982–83—A Season of Extraordinary Climatic Anomalies". American Meteorological Society.
  8. "Galapagos Penguin". Oceana. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  9. Bingham, Mike. "Galápagos Penguin". International Penguin Conservation Work Group.
  10. "Galapagos Penguins". MarineBio Conservation Society. 18 May 2017. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  11. "Galapagos Penguin Facts | Birds of the Galapagos Islands". nathab.com. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  12. "Galápagos Penguin Biology". Center for Ecosystem Sentinels. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  13. "Louis Mowbray". Bermuda Biographies. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  14. International), BirdLife International (BirdLife (9 August 2018). "IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Spheniscus mendiculus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  15. "Galápagos Penguin". American Bird Conservancy. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  16. "Galapagos penguin population conservation efforts". Galapagos Conservancy, Inc. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  17. "The Adaptations of the Galapagos Penguin For a Harsh and Unpredictable Environment". Archived from the original on 29 May 2009.
  18. http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/en/volcanoes/pacific/galapagos.html
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