Adélie Penguin, Petermann Island, Antarctica

Along with the Emperor , the Adélie is the only other truly Antarctic penguin. It breeds further south than any other penguin. The body and head are all blue-black, the bill is reddish with a black tip, and the eye is ringed in white. The classic “little man in evening dress”, the Adélie is the littlest species of penguin in the Antarctic. It might look cute and a bit clumsy on land but don’t be fooled, these birds are feisty. They’ve been known to take on potential predators – seals or large seabirds – or even attack visiting researchers with their flippers.

At sea its cruising speed is about 7.2 km/h (4.5 mph). The maximum recorded fishing dive was to 175 meters (574 feet). They feed mostly on crustaceans, the rest fish and cephalopods (though mostly krill along the peninsula).

On their breeding grounds, Adélie s experience the coldest Antarctic conditions and enjoy the shortest summers. The whole breeding cycle has to be fitted into the few weeks when temperatures rise above freezing and when food is abundant in open waters not far away. The typically dense colonies are established on the ice-free slopes of rocky coasts, headlands and islands, on high ground, often far from open water but offering a practicable route to the sea. The critical requirement is that there should be open water within a few miles in the January/February period when chicks need regular supplies of food.

Adélie penguins are increasing in Antarctica. However, in areas where climate change is established, Adélie populations have fallen by more than 65% in the past 25 years. The biggest threat to them right now is climate change (other penguins, like gentoos, are better adapted to warmer climates).

Info from “Antarctica, A guide to the wildlife” by Tony Soper and WWF