What is special about gentoo penguins?
These penguins are known for building nests of pebbles during the breeding season, which can reach up to 8 inches in height! They also live in large colonies near the coast.
Their breeding methods are very specific.
They prefer to live in areas that are only partially covered by ice, or even completely ice-free!
As an island bird, gentoo penguins usually live in the lowlands of islands.
Size: 50–90 cm
Weight: 5–8 kg
Age: 15–20 years
Dive depth: 200 m (maximum recorded)
Dive duration: 7 minutes
On land, adult penguins have no natural predators, except for the occasional human who hunts them for their skin and oil. However, in the water, penguins can avoid many predators, including leopard seals, orcas, and sea lions that inhabit the same waters.
There are an estimated 380,000 breeding pairs of gentoos left in the wild. About 100,000 of these pairs inhabit the Falkland Islands, which include South Georgia Island, the Antarctic Peninsula, Croix de Provence, Macquarie, South Orkney, Heard, Kerguelen, South Sandwich, and Prince Edward Islands, among other inhabited areas.
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Gentoo penguins are social seabirds that form large breeding colonies on Antarctic and sub-Antarctic islands.
When do gentoo penguins breed? Most begin to mate between 2 and 4 years of age, often returning to the same gentoo penguin nesting sites each year. Often described as socially monogamous, gentoos remain with one partner. Divorce rates are quite low, with some pair bonds lasting a lifetime.
Despite returning to the same breeding grounds, gentoo penguins do not have strong nesting site attachments. They build their cup-shaped nests of rocks and pebbles. Nest stone theft is common, which can cause tension between neighboring nests. Rocks are not only used for nest building, but are also used as symbols of love. Giving the best rocks as a gift can be a sign of affection and support in an attempt to attract a mate.
What are the predators of gentoo penguins? Gentoo penguins face few potential predators both at sea and on land. At sea, they are threatened by various species of pinnipeds (seals), including South American sea lions, leopard seals, and occasionally Antarctic fur seals. When it comes to whales, the primary prey is orcas, especially type B orcas that prefer penguins on the menu.
On land, gents face a range of avian predators, including giant petrels, skuas, and even striped caracaras when they are in the Falkland Islands. These birds will take eggs and chicks whenever possible. In addition, they must contend with the annoyance of the snow-brown beak, which will sometimes try to distract the chicks from feeding in order to get some freshly returned krill directly from the adults.
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