The African penguin (Spheniscus demersus) is a species of penguin that lives in southern African waters. Like all extant penguins, it is flightless and adapted for a marine habitat. Once extremely numerous, the African penguin is declining rapidly due to a combination of several threats and is classified as endangered. It is a charismatic species and is popular with tourists.
The African penguin is a small to medium-sized penguin with black-and-white plumage, serving the animal as a perfect camouflage to protect it from predators. Due to the black feathers on their back, they merge with the environment, remaining unseen to those looking down from above. Meanwhile, the white coloration on the front part of their body allows them to be unspotted by aquatic predators, looking up from below. The penguins have a horseshoe-shaped, white-colored stripe on their face, stretching from around their eyes to their chest as well on the chin, towards the bill. Young penguins possess gray-blue feathers, which darken as they grow up.
African penguins are found along the coast of South Africa and Namibia. They do not migrate and live in colonies on 24 islands between Namibia and Algoa Bay, near Port Elizabeth, South Africa. African penguins spend most of their lives at sea and come ashore to breed and molt.
African penguins are both diurnal and crepuscular. By day, the birds hide in their burrows, escaping the sun. At twilight and dawn, they come out to forage. African penguins are highly social animals. Grooming is a common activity in these animals. They groom each other in order to clean the plumage, rearrange the feathers and take off parasites. In addition, grooming reinforces the social bond between a pair. During their courtship rituals, the birds are extremely noisy, emitting loud calls, which are quite similar to these of donkeys. In order to clean and cool themselves, they frequently take baths, making their bathing spots at a distance of just a few meters from the seashore.
These birds are monogamous, mating once in a lifetime. They can use the same breeding sites for many years. African penguins breed all year round with the peak period, occurring in February. Usually, the female digs a burrow or simply uses a hollow under a rock or bush, where she lays 2 eggs, after which both the male and the female incubate the eggs for up to 40 days. During the first month after hatching out, the chicks are fed and cared by both parents. Then they join crèches or groups of other chicks, where they find protection from predators. The chicks stay with their parents, until the age of 3-5 months, after which they leave the colony and start living independently. Male penguins become reproductively mature at 5 years old while females start to breed when they are 4 years old.
Commercial fishing negatively affects the population of the species, reducing prey items and leading to food shortages. Meanwhile, the African penguins compete with Cape Fur Seals for breeding areas as well as prey items. On the other hand, the penguins are threatened by their natural predators. For example, they are prey species for seals, while their eggs and chicks are a source of food for other predators in the area. In addition, these birds currently suffer from oil pollution.
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