African Penguin (Spheniscus demersus): Facts and Threats

What does an African penguin look like?

African penguins have black backs and white fronts, a color pattern called countershading that hides them from predators: seen from below, the white belly blends with the bright surface, and from above, the black back blends with the dark sea. A white band curves from above the eye around the cheek to the throat, framing a black face mask.

Across the upper chest runs a single black band shaped like an upside-down horseshoe, and the white belly is sprinkled with black spots. The spot pattern is different for every bird, much like a fingerprint, and researchers use it to identify individuals. Above each eye is a patch of bare pink skin. These patches help the bird shed heat; when a penguin warms up, more blood flows through them and they turn a deeper pink.

Juveniles look quite different. They are gray-blue to brownish on the back and plain white below, without the bold bands or spots. They gain adult plumage after about two to three years. The African penguin closely resembles its South American relatives, the Humboldt and Magellanic penguins. The Magellanic penguin has two black chest bands instead of one.

How big is an African penguin?

The African penguin is a medium-sized penguin, much smaller than the emperor penguin but larger than the little penguin of Australia and New Zealand.

Males are slightly larger than females, with longer and deeper bills. Weight changes through the year, especially before and after the annual molt.

Where do African penguins live?

African penguins live along the southwestern coast of Africa, in the cold, nutrient-rich waters of the Benguela Current and the western edge of the Agulhas Current. Their breeding range stretches from central Namibia to Algoa Bay near Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth) in South Africa. Historically they bred on about 27 islands; today most of the population is concentrated in fewer colonies, among them Dassen, Robben, Dyer, St Croix and Bird islands.

Only a few colonies are on the mainland. In the 1980s penguins settled at Boulders Beach near Simon’s Town and at Stony Point in Betty’s Bay, both near Cape Town. Boulders Beach is now one of the best places in the world to see wild penguins up close, with boardwalks that let visitors watch them without disturbing them. To see how this range compares with other penguins, read where penguins live.

While breeding, adults usually feed within a few tens of kilometers of their colony, but young birds wander much farther, sometimes hundreds of kilometers.

What do African penguins eat?

African penguins are fish-eaters. They feed mainly on small fish that swim in dense schools, especially sardines (also called pilchards) and anchovies, as well as round herring, horse mackerel and mullet. Squid and small crustaceans make up a smaller part of the diet.

They hunt by sight in daylight, often in groups that work together to drive schools of fish toward the surface. Most dives are short and shallow, averaging around 25–30 m (80–100 ft) and lasting about a minute, although dives to 130 m (430 ft) have been recorded. An adult may eat around 500 g (1.1 lb) of fish a day, and more when feeding large chicks. Their diet is compared with other species in what penguins eat.

Underwater, African penguins “fly” with their stiff, flattened flippers and steer with their feet and tail. They usually cruise at about 7 km/h (4 mph) but can reach close to 20 km/h (12 mph) in short bursts while chasing fish. Like other penguins, they drink seawater and get rid of the extra salt through glands above the eyes.

Behavior and calls

African penguins are social, colonial birds. They gather on shore at night and during the hottest part of the day, and go to sea to feed mostly in daylight. On land they spend a great deal of time preening, including preening each other’s heads and necks, which a bird cannot reach well on its own.

Their best-known feature is the call. The loud braying display call, given with the head thrown back and flippers waving, earned the species the old name “jackass penguin”. Researchers recognize several call types: a bray used to attract and keep a partner, a yell used in disputes with neighbors, and a “haw” contact call used between partners when one is at sea. Each bird’s voice is individual, allowing partners and chicks to find each other in a crowded colony.

Reproduction and life cycle

African penguins can breed in any month, but nesting peaks from about March to May in South Africa and November to December in Namibia. They are monogamous, and many pairs return to the same nest site year after year. Fidelity in this and other species is explored in do penguins mate for life.

Traditionally the birds dug burrows into thick layers of guano, the dried droppings of seabirds, which kept eggs and chicks cool and safe. Most of that guano was scraped away for fertilizer in the 1800s and 1900s, so many penguins now nest in shallow scrapes under bushes or boulders, in sand burrows or in artificial nest boxes.

The female lays two eggs, and both parents share incubation for about 40 days. For the first few weeks, one parent always guards the chicks while the other feeds at sea. Older chicks gather in groups called crèches while both parents fish. Chicks fledge at 60–130 days, depending on how much food is available, and the young birds then spend one to two years at sea before returning to molt into adult plumage. They usually start breeding at about four to five years old.

Once a year, adults molt all their feathers at once. Because their new feathers are not yet waterproof, they cannot go to sea and must fast for about three weeks, losing a large share of their body weight.

Lifespan and predators

Most African penguins live about 10–25 years in the wild, and captive birds can live longer.

At sea, adults are hunted by sharks and Cape fur seals. On land, eggs and chicks are taken by kelp gulls and sacred ibises, and at mainland colonies by mongooses, genets, caracals, leopards and domestic cats and dogs. This is one reason why most colonies are on islands.

Why is the African penguin Critically Endangered?

The African penguin was once abundant. Around 1.5 million birds were estimated in 1910, but by 2023 the breeding population had fallen below 10,000 pairs. In October 2024 the IUCN Red List moved the species from Endangered to Critically Endangered, making it the first penguin species to reach that category.

Historical causes include the mass collection of penguin eggs for food, which continued on a large scale until the 1960s and on a smaller scale into the 1970s, and the removal of guano that the birds used for nesting. Today the main threat is a shortage of food: sardine and anchovy stocks have shifted away from many colonies, while commercial purse-seine fisheries target the same fish. Oil spills, heat stress, disease, predation and disturbance add to the pressure. The full story is told in why African penguins are endangered.

Conservation efforts include fishing closures around key colonies, artificial nest boxes, the rescue and hand-rearing of abandoned chicks by organizations such as SANCCOB, and the creation of new colonies. In March 2025 a court settlement in South Africa led to larger, long-term no-fishing zones around six important breeding colonies.

Myths and facts

Myth: all penguins live in the snow and ice. The African penguin breeds in a warm, sunny climate where summer air temperatures can be uncomfortably hot for a bird built for cold water. It copes by nesting in shade, panting, holding its flippers away from its body and using its bare pink face patches to lose heat. Most penguin species actually live far from Antarctica.

Myth: “jackass penguin” is an insult. The name simply describes the donkey-like bray. It fell out of use partly because the Humboldt and Magellanic penguins of South America make very similar calls, so African penguin is a clearer name.

Fact: rehabilitation works. After the MV Treasure sank between Robben and Dassen islands in June 2000, about 19,000 oiled penguins were captured and cleaned, and about 19,500 more were moved away from the spill and released far to the east so they would take one to three weeks to swim home. More than 90% of the oiled birds were successfully released, in what is often described as the largest rescue of a single animal species.

Relationship with people

African penguins are among the most familiar penguins in the world because they do well in zoos and aquariums, where they are kept in outdoor enclosures in Europe and North America. Coordinated breeding programs keep healthy captive populations and support conservation in the wild.

In South Africa, the penguins of Boulders Beach attract hundreds of thousands of visitors a year, bringing income to the local community and raising awareness of the species. The penguins’ tolerance of people is a gift for visitors, but it also brings a responsibility: watching from boardwalks, keeping a respectful distance and never feeding or touching the birds.