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Erect-crested Penguin - Eudyptes
Sclateri
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Distinguishing features
Erect-crested
penguins are easily identified on land as the crests stick straight up in
the air! At sea they are very difficult to distinguish from Snares
penguins. Chicks
have brown grey backs and white fronts.
Photos
of Erect-crested penguins
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Sub-species
There
are no generally recognised sub-species of the Erect-crested penguin.
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Height &
Weight
Erect-crested
penguins are about 65 cm tall. Erect-crested
penguins weight varies by about 1 kg during the year. Typical maximum
weight - before moulting - is about 6.5 kg.
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Breeding locations
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Erect-crested penguins breed on
2 sub-Antarctic Islands south of New Zealand, the Antipodes and
Bounty Islands. Estimates of the total breeding population
suggest 115,000 pairs on the Bounty Islands adn 50 -
60,000 pairs on the Antipodes. The population is believed to be
declining. |
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Nesting behaviour
Nests
are simple depressions in the ground lined with some vegetation where
available. Two eggs are laid but usually only one chick is raised. Little
is known about the breeding of Erect-crested penguins. They probably
follow a similar pattern to other crested penguins.
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Principal diet
There
have been no studies of the diet of Erect-crested penguins. There is one
report that suggests they eat mainly krill and squid.
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Alternative
names
Erect-crested
penguins are sometimes called "Sclater's penguins".
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Bibliography
Penguins John Sparks and Tony Soper, Facts on File Publications, Oxford,
1987.
Penguins of the World Pauline Reilly, OUP, Oxford, 1994.
The Penguins Tony D Williams, OUP, Oxford, 1995.
Penguin CAMP reports, IUCN, 1998 and 2004.
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