African Penguins are flightless birds that spend as much as 75% of their time underwater, searching for food in the ocean. Their wings help them move extremely fast through the water and they are only airborne when they leap out of the water. They are incredible swimmers, but as we have all seen they can be quite clumsy on land- this is both hilarious and entertaining to watch. Penguins are monogamous, and stick with the same breeding partner for their entire lives and will only go in search for a new partner if the other doesn’t return to the nest or dies.
When we think of penguins we think of freezing cold temperatures and Antarctica. Well, it is in fact a common myth that all penguins come from Antarctica and enjoy colder climates. There are 19 species of penguin (according to the Integrated Taxonomic Information System, ITIS) and the majority of the species are found on every continent in the Southern hemisphere. Some species, like the Galápagos penguin, lives on tropical islands at the equator. You wouldn’t expect a species of penguin to be found in Africa either, but there is!
The African Penguin
The African penguin (Spheniscus demersus), also known as the Southern African penguin or Cape penguin, is confined to African waters and is the only species of penguin that breeds in Africa. They also have the unfortunate name of a ‘jackass penguin’ because of their loud donkey-like call. These adorable little birds nest in burrows, in rocks crevices and under shrubs and form large colonies, sometimes numbering over 10,000 pairs. The Benguela Current brings nutrient-rich water to the west coast of South Africa and this is where you will find the largest numbers of the non-migratory African penguins. Fish make up the largest part of their diet (over 80%) particularly anchovy, however they do feed on cephalopods and crustaceans.
‘Another one of Africa’s most endangered species’
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) there are 50,000 mature individuals and their population is continually declining. In 2015, the number of pairs was about 25,000 or 50,000 mature penguins. The South African population declined from around 70,000 pairs in 1978/1979 to 19,300 pairs in 2015. In Namibia the population declined from 12,162 pairs in 1978 and estimated 5,800 pairs in 2015. This shows a >50% decline in the total population in three generations. The African penguin was first classified as ‘threatened’ back in 1988 and since 2010 they have been classified as ‘endangered’ on the IUCN red list of threatened species. They are another one of Africa’s most endangered species.
Threats to their population
The African penguin population is declining due to the many anthropogenic threats they face. Commercial fisheries have forced penguins to search for their prey further offshore because of over-fishing of their food source. The penguin’s eggs were also once considered delicacy and were poached from nests between 1920-1960’s. The penguin’s guano (accumulated excrement) was also collected by humans to be sold and used as fertiliser. Guano is important for the ecosystem as it is nitrogen, phosphate and potassium rich, which are key nutrients for plant growth. The penguins use the guano to construct their nests and removal by humans would damage and reduce the number of nests. Oil spills from in the ocean has detrimental effects on marine life, especially birds. Oil spills pollute the ocean and as it covers the penguins feathers, it causes them to no longer be waterproof. This restricts their ability to successfully hunt fish therefore the penguin would eventually die of starvation. If the penguin tries to preen themselves to clean off the oil, the oils would enter their beak. Once ingested, the oil poisons the penguin, leading to death. Other threats to the African penguin include climate change and severe weather causing habitat shifting and alterations through storms and flooding. Approximately eight million tonnes of plastic enters the ocean each year. Plastic pollution has devastating effects on all marine life, sea birds and is even a problem for us humans. Penguins can mistake plastic for food, and once it is ingested it cannot be digested and will cause a blockage within their digestive system. This will be undoubtedly painful and cause a lot of discomfort for the birds, starvation and death shortly follows. It is also to common for penguins to get caught in plastic waste in the ocean, which can lead to injury, drowning, or restrict them from feeding with another tragic outcome of death.
‘Scientists estimate with the current rate of decline, that by 2026, they could be extinct’.
Conservation Strategies
Conservation strategies include the protection of penguin colonies and their nesting habitat. Established colonies of African penguins at Boulders Beach in Simon’s Town are under the protection of South African National Parks (SANParks). Marine Protected Areas have also been created in Southern Namibia including all penguin breeding and key foraging habitats. The use of artificial nest has helped with increasing breeding success and maintenance of their natural habitat that has been destroyed by storms, floods, causing severe degradation has been beneficial to the species. There are organisations that rescue and rehabilitate, sick, oiled, abandoned or injured penguins and return them back into the wild. All of the current strategies are in place to halt the decline of the African penguin population. Scientists estimate with the current rate of decline, that by 2026, they could be extinct. We can all help save the African Penguin from extinction, no matter where you are in the world, by doing our bit to put an end to plastic pollution and reduce our negative impact on earth by slowing down global warming and climate change.
Come back next Friday for more interesting facts, #factfriday !
Resources
- Barham, P. J. ; Underhill, L. G.; Crawford, R. J. M.; Leshoro, T. M. 2007. Differences in breeding success between African Penguins (Spheniscus demersus) that were and were not oiled in the MV Treasure oil-spill in 2000. Emu 107: 7-13.
- Crawford RJM, Altwegg R, Barham BJ, Barham PJ, Durant JM, Dyer BM, Makhado AB, Pichegru L, Ryan PG, Underhill LG, Upfold L, Visagie J, Waller LJ, Whittington PA. 2011. Collapse of South Africa’s penguins in the early 21st century: a consideration of food availability. African Journal of Marine Science 33: 139–156.
- ITIS report – Spheniscus demersus –https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=174462#null
- IUCN Red list of Threatened Species – African Penguin- https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22697810/132604504#assessment-information
- SANCCOB – https://sanccob.co.za/projects/penguin-seabird-rangers/
