---
title: "What the sources say about the King Penguin | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "41 claims from the King Penguin profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
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---

# What the sources say about the King Penguin (*Aptenodytes patagonicus*)

> 41 claims from the King Penguin profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [King Penguin](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/king-penguin/)

## Aptenodytes patagonicus (king penguin). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Aptenodytes_patagonicus/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| second largest of all penguins | King penguins are the second largest of all penguin species. |
| Sub-Antarctic islands mainly surrounding Antarctica, such as South Georgia, Crozet and Kerguelen | colonies are mainly located on islands surrounding Antarctica. Islands include Crozet, Falkland, Heard, Kerguelen, Macquarie, Prince Edward, South Georgia and South Sandwich. |
| Carries its single egg on its feet for about 54 days | The female lays a single, greenish-white egg in November or December. This is transferred to the male penguin's feet and is incubated for approximately 54 days |
| Second in Size Only to the Emperor | King penguins are the second largest of all penguin species. (note: the emperor as the larger one is cornell-king-penguin: "The King Penguin is a large bird, but smaller and slimmer than the Emperor Penguin.") |
| it is the second largest of all penguin species | King penguins are the second largest of all penguin species. |
| Adults stand 85 to 95 centimetres tall and weigh between 9.3 and 17.3 kilograms, averaging 11.8 kilograms. | Their documented height ranges from 85 to 95 cm and weight is between 9.3 and 17.3 kg. Average adult weight has been found to be 11.8 kg. |
| Its head is nearly black, with a spoon-shaped orange patch on each side | Adult king penguins have a dark, nearly black head with orange to orange-yellow, spoon-shaped spots on either side of the head |
| a stripe on its lower beak reflects ultraviolet light, which is thought to signal sexual maturity, health or social standing | This bill has a stripe on the lower mandible that ranges in color from pinkish-red to orange-yellow and exhibits ultraviolet (UV) reflectance. ... it is thought to signal sexual maturity, health and/or social standing. |
| Young birds do not reach full adult colouring until they are three years old, and chicks are simply dark brown before their first molt. | Juvenile king penguins are similar to adults, but their coloration isn't as vivid. They do not reach full adult coloration until three years of age. Prior to the first molt, the chicks are simply dark brown. |
| King penguins breed mainly on sub-Antarctic islands such as South Georgia, the Falklands, Crozet and Kerguelen, with no colonies found south of 60 degrees S latitude | colonies are mainly located on islands surrounding Antarctica. Islands include Crozet, Falkland, Heard, Kerguelen, Macquarie, Prince Edward, South Georgia and South Sandwich. Although no colonies have been found south of latitude 60 degrees S |
| They have been known to travel up to 500 kilometres from their colonies to feed. | They have been known to travel up to 500 km from their breeding grounds to forage |
| A king penguin is one of only two penguin species that do not build a nest. | King penguins are one of only two penguin species that do not build nests. |
| The female lays a single egg, which is transferred to the male's feet and incubated for about 54 days under a warm fold of belly skin, with both parents trading shifts of five to 22 days. | The female lays a single, greenish-white egg in November or December. This is transferred to the male penguin's feet and is incubated for approximately 54 days under a pouch of belly skin that keeps it at the penguin's internal body temperature. ... the partners take turns in incubating the egg, with shifts ranging from 5 to 22 days. |
| By the end of his first shift, a father has typically lost 30% of his body weight, and males nearing a critical mass of about 10 kilograms must choose between abandoning the egg or holding out for the mother's return. | By the end of their first incubation shift the males have typically lost 30 percent of their body weight. A minimum body mass of 10 kg is considered to be a critical mass for male king penguins. When they are approaching 10 kg, the males must choose whether to abandon the egg or to continue waiting for the female to return and relieve them. |
| Raising one chick to independence takes 14 to 16 months. Successful parents do not start again until their chick has fledged, so they begin the next season late and usually fail, but that failure lets them breed earlier the year after. | Birth to independence takes 14 to 16 months. ... Successful parents do not begin their next breeding cycle until their chick has successfully fledged. This causes a successful breeding pair to begin the next season late. The outcome is usually a failed cycle because an egg laid after December typically is not successful. However, this failure allows them to breed earlier the following season. (note: "so" mirrors "This causes a successful breeding pair to begin the next season late"; "usually fail" is "The outcome is usually a failed cycle") |
| Molt is when a king penguin grows new feathers, a month-long stage that opens each breeding cycle for both parents. | Their cycle beings with a 1-month molting stage for both parents, which is complete by the end of October. (note: quote reproduces ADW's own typo ("beings" for "begins") verbatim; "grows new feathers" matches fasting-1988: "avian molt involves the utilization of amino acids for synthesis of new feathers") |
| King penguin colonies are noisy, and with no nest or landmark to meet at, parents call to locate their chicks. | Due to the noisy environment of king penguin colonies, adults repeatedly call out 3 to 7 syllables of varying volumes with two frequencies to locate chicks. ... The parental call is thought to be learned during the first five weeks of life and is important because of the lack of nests and landmarks in the king penguins' habitats. |
| The calls carry two frequencies at once, made by the syrinx, a two-part voice organ whose halves each produce sound independently. | The primary form of communication in king penguins is a two-voice system that is produced by the syrinx, a two-part organ located where the bronchi join. Each part produces sound independently. |
| Chicks are thought to pick out the lower of the two frequencies, which carries farther through the noise, and to learn their parent's call in their first five weeks of life. | adults repeatedly call out 3 to 7 syllables of varying volumes with two frequencies to locate chicks. The chicks are thought to identify the calls by the lower of the two frequencies because they transmit farther in the seeming chaos of many adults calling at once. ... The parental call is thought to be learned during the first five weeks of life |
| Antarctic and sub-Antarctic fur seals, leopard seals and killer whales prey on adults, while brown skuas and giant petrels take chicks. | Antarctic fur seals, sub-Antarctic fur seals, leopard seals, and killer whales regularly prey on adult king penguins. Also, brown skuas and giant petrels prey on king penguin chicks. |
| King penguins have a lower rate of staying with the same partner than smaller penguin species. Nobody knows for sure why, but fat storage is one likely explanation. A bird that starts building up fat too early becomes an easier target for predators, and one that waits too long risks missing its mate's return to the colony, so a pair that doesn't arrive together can split up or delay breeding. | King penguins have a lower rate of monogamy than smaller penguin species. Currently, there is no definitive answer as to why this occurs; however, two explanations have merit: 1) mates not arriving to the colony at the same time, and 2) the amount of fat the penguin has stored. Fat storage plays a role in the low monogamy rate because if the penguins begin storing fat too early they become more vulnerable to predators. If they begin storing fat too late, they may not return to the colony at the same time as their mate. If both mates do not arrive at the colony at the same time, breeding can be delayed or a new mate may be chosen. (note: "partner" is a plain-language stand-in for "mate"/"monogamy"; "so" mirrors the source's own "if both mates do not arrive... breeding can be delayed") |
| weightKg: 11.8 | Average adult weight has been found to be 11.8 kg. |
| tags: penguin | King penguins are the second largest of all penguin species. |
| tags: antarctic | colonies are mainly located on islands surrounding Antarctica. |
| whose call carries two frequencies together: each half of its two-part syrinx produces sound independently | The primary form of communication in king penguins is a two-voice system that is produced by the syrinx, a two-part organ located where the bronchi join. Each part produces sound independently. |

## AnAge entry for Aptenodytes patagonicus. AnAge: The Animal Ageing and Longevity Database, Human Ageing Genomic Resources.

https://genomics.senescence.info/species/entry.php?species=Aptenodytes_patagonicus

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A banded wild king penguin has been recorded living to at least 27 years old. | Maximum longevity 27 years (wild) ... One banded individual was found to be at least 27 years old. |

## Martínez, Jutglar & Garcia (2020). King Penguin (Aptenodytes patagonicus). Birds of the World.

https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.kinpen1.01

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| smaller and slimmer than the only other member of its genus, the emperor penguin | The King Penguin is a large bird, but smaller and slimmer than the Emperor Penguin. (note: "only other member of its genus" is adw-king-penguin's classification: "Genus Aptenodytes emperor penguin and king penguin") |
| they tend to keep north of the pack ice, where the related emperor penguin takes over further south | King Penguins are circumpolar birds of the subantarctic zone ... They are fish eaters, and tend to keep north of the ice pack, replacing the related Emperor Penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) in these lower latitudes. |
| where they tend to keep north of the pack ice to fish | They are fish eaters, and tend to keep north of the ice pack |
| Sub-Antarctic penguin with an orange neck patch reaching its upper breast | King Penguins are circumpolar birds of the subantarctic zone ... showing a gorgeous orange neck patch that extends to the upper breast |

## Aptenodytes patagonicus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T22697748A184637776.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2020-3.rlts.t22697748a184637776.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Least Concern | IUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC). Aptenodytes patagonicus Miller, 1778, IUCN taxon 22697748. (note: read through GBIF's copy of the Red List per docs/fact-check.md; category matches stats.conservationStatus) |

## Kooyman et al. (1982). Diving Depths and Energy Requirements of King Penguins. Science.

https://doi.org/10.1126/science.7100916

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| a deep diver: tracked birds have gone past 240 meters | half of 2595 dives of three king penguins were more than 50 meters and two dives exceeded 240 meters. |
| tracked birds have dived past 240 meters | half of 2595 dives of three king penguins were more than 50 meters and two dives exceeded 240 meters. (note: ADW's 322 m / 10 min / 12 km/h were cut in review: an undated secondary account, while the pack's papers give different figures (two of 2,595 dives past 240 m; 95% of Crozet dives under 6 min)) |
| Tracking three king penguins over four- to eight-day trips at sea, researchers logged 2,595 dives: half went past 50 metres, and two passed 240 metres. | During 4- to 8-day periods at sea, half of 2595 dives of three king penguins were more than 50 meters and two dives exceeded 240 meters. |

## Culik et al. (1996). Diving Energetics in King Penguins (Aptenodytes Patagonicus). Journal of Experimental Biology.

https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.199.4.973

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Tracking devices on king penguins at the Crozet Islands showed that 95% of dives lasted less than 6 minutes, and about two-thirds lasted less than 4. At other times the birds dived over and over for up to 5 hours straight, with each dive lasting around 5 minutes and roughly a minute and a half at the surface in between. | Dive duration in wild king penguins ... determined at Ile de la Possession, Crozet Archipelago ... 95 % of dives were less than 6 min long and 66 % of dives were less than 4 min long. ... or dive regularly (for up to 5 h) with long dive durations (5 min) and constant interdive surface intervals (1.5 min). |

## Adams & Klages (1987). Seasonal variation in the diet of the king penguin (Aptenodytes patagonicus) at sub‐Antarctic Marion Island. Journal of Zoology.

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1987.tb05992.x

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Myctophid lanternfish, squid, and the occasional crustacean | Fish accounted for 87% by wet mass, 75% by numbers and 69% by reconstituted mass. ... Squid comprised most of the remainder with crustaceans forming less than 1% of the diet by numbers. ... the most abundant being three species of myctophid fish |
| At Marion Island, fish made up 87% of what king penguins ate by weight, mostly small lanternfish, with squid filling most of the rest and crustaceans barely registering. | The diet of the king penguin Aptenodytes patagonicus at Marion Island was examined ... Fish accounted for 87% by wet mass ... Squid comprised most of the remainder with crustaceans forming less than 1% of the diet by numbers. ... the most abundant being three species of myctophid fish |
| At Marion Island, fish made up about 68% of what king penguins ate in winter but rose to almost 100% in summer, probably because the fish were easier to find. Three small lanternfish species and a squid called Kondakovia longimana were the most common prey, and a meal ran from 8.5 to 12.6% of an adult's body mass. | Their proportional importance by wet mass increased from 68% during winter to almost 100% in summer and probably reflects a real increase in their local availability. ... the most abundant being three species of myctophid fish, Krefftichthys anderssoni, Protomyctophum tenisonì and Electrona carlsbergi, and a squid Kondakovia longimana. ... Meal size varied from 8.5–12.6% of adult mass (note: "probably because" carries over the source's own hedge ("probably reflects... availability")) |
| tags: carnivore | Fish accounted for 87% by wet mass, 75% by numbers and 69% by reconstituted mass. |

## Jouventin et al. (2005). Ultraviolet Beak Spots in King and Emperor Penguins. The Condor.

https://doi.org/10.1650/7512

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Researchers found ultraviolet peaks on the beak spots of king and emperor penguins that are missing in juveniles, and among free-ranging king penguins, birds that had just paired up showed higher UV reflectance than ones still courting, suggesting the spot may play a role in pairing and signal sexual maturity. | we found UV peaks of reflectance in two large Aptenodytes species, King (A. patagonicus) and Emperor (A. forsteri) Penguins. ... they were lacking in juveniles ... measurements of free-ranging King Penguins showed that recently paired birds had higher UV reflectance than courting ones, suggesting possible roles of UV beak spots in pairing and as an indicator of sexual maturity. |

## Cherel, Leloup & Le Maho (1988). Fasting in king penguin. II. Hormonal and metabolic changes during molt. American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology.

https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpregu.1988.254.2.r178

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A study of seven molting birds found their body mass fell by 58% over 41 days of fasting, from an average of 18 kilograms. | Hormonal and biochemical changes were studied in seven molting king penguins. Their initial body mass was 18 kg. It decreased by 58% over 41 days of fasting. |