Why is the spectacled penguin called a donkey penguin? Penguins of South Africa

The spectacled penguin belongs to the penguin family and is included in the spectacled penguin genus. Forms a species also called burro, blackfoot and African penguin. Its habitat covers the southwestern coast of Africa and 24 islands near the coast. In addition, representatives of the species live in zoos around the world, and young individuals are often found outside their natural range.

Representatives of the species reach 60-70 cm in length. Body weight is 2.5-4.5 kg. Penguins are white in front and black in back. The limbs are black. There are black stripes and spots on the chest that are unique to each individual, like fingerprints human fingers. Above the eyes there are pink glands used for thermoregulation. The higher the body temperature, the more blood is sent to the glands and cooled by the surrounding air.

Sexual dimorphism is expressed in size - males are larger than females and have larger beaks. Black and white coloring protects birds in the water from predators, as it creates countershadows. Juveniles differ in color from adults. It varies from gray-blue to brown.

Reproduction and lifespan

This species is monogamous. Spectacled penguins nest in colonies. The breeding season is extended. Its peak occurs in March-May in South Africa and in November-December in Namibia. There are 2 eggs in the clutch. They are deposited in burrows, in depressions in the soil, under boulders or in bushes. Both parents do the incubation. Incubation period lasts 40 days.

Hatched chicks are covered with brown-gray down. For a month they stay near their parents, and then unite in the so-called nurseries. Chicks fledge at the age of 60-130 days. It all depends on environment and nutrition. After this, the young birds go to sea. IN wildlife The spectacled penguin lives 10-15 years. The maximum life expectancy is 25-27 years. Puberty occurs at the age of 4-5 years.

Behavior and nutrition

Representatives of the species cannot fly. They make cries reminiscent of donkeys. During molting, they cannot forage in water, as the feathers become permeable to water. Molting takes 3 weeks. They spend most of their lives at sea. Only during the breeding season do they settle on land. They can swim in water at a speed of 20 km/h. They dive to a depth of 100-120 meters. Can swim in sea water 120 km.

IN marine environment Sharks, seals and killer whales are dangerous. Ground enemies are mongooses, caracals, and domestic cats. Seagulls can steal eggs. The spectacled penguin feeds on small fish, squid, and crustaceans. Food is obtained no further than 20 km from the coast. An adult consumes 540 grams of food per day. During the breeding season, up to 1 kg of food.

Number

IN early XIX centuries, 4 million spectacled penguins lived on the planet. By 2000, there were 200 thousand of them. In 2010, the population size was 55 thousand adult individuals. In 2013 this type received endangered status. It is assumed that if protective measures are not taken, the spectacled penguin will disappear within 15 years.

(also known as donkey penguin, or black-footed penguin, or African penguin(lat. Spheniscus demersus)) is a species of penguin from the genus Spectacled Penguin. Like any other penguin, the spectacled penguin cannot fly.

Appearance

Spreading

The cries of penguins resemble those of donkeys. A penguin lives 10-12 years, females usually begin to give birth at 4-5 years. The clutch consists of two eggs, which are incubated by both parents in turn for about 40 days. The chicks are covered with brownish-gray down, later with a bluish tint. The breeding season is not clearly defined and varies depending on the location.

Causes of disappearance and protection

Gallery

Spectacled penguin I.jpg

Spectacled penguin at the Moscow Zoo

Spectacled Penguin II.jpg

Spectacled Penguin III.jpg

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Notes

Literature

Beycek V., Stastny K. Birds. Illustrated encyclopedia. - M.: Labyrinth-press, 2004. - 288 p.
Koblik E. A. Variety of birds. Part 1. - M.: Moscow University Publishing House, 2001.
Animal life. In 7 volumes. T. 6. Birds. - M.: Education, 1986. - 527 p.

Links

in the International Red Book
, - spectacled penguin in the Krasnoyarsk Zoo

An excerpt characterizing the Spectacled Penguin

Consequently, it was only necessary for Metternich, Rumyantsev or Talleyrand, between the exit and the reception, to try hard and write a more skillful piece of paper, or for Napoleon to write to Alexander: Monsieur mon frere, je consens a rendre le duche au duc d "Oldenbourg, [My lord brother, I agree return the duchy to the Duke of Oldenburg.] - and there would be no war.
It is clear that this was how the matter seemed to contemporaries. It is clear that Napoleon thought that the cause of the war was the intrigues of England (as he said this on the island of St. Helena); It is clear that it seemed to the members of the English House that the cause of the war was Napoleon’s lust for power; that it seemed to the Prince of Oldenburg that the cause of the war was the violence committed against him; that it seemed to the merchants that the cause of the war was the continental system that was ruining Europe, that it seemed to the old soldiers and generals that main reason there was a need to use them in action; legitimists of that time that it was necessary to restore les bons principes [ good principles], and to the diplomats of that time that everything happened because the alliance of Russia with Austria in 1809 was not skillfully hidden from Napoleon and that memorandum No. 178 was awkwardly written. It is clear that these and countless, infinite number of reasons, the number of which depends on the countless differences in points of view, it seemed to contemporaries; but for us, our descendants, who contemplate the enormity of the event in its entirety and delve into its simple and terrible meaning, these reasons seem insufficient. It is incomprehensible to us that millions of Christian people killed and tortured each other, because Napoleon was power-hungry, Alexander was firm, the politics of England was cunning and the Duke of Oldenburg was offended. It is impossible to understand what connection these circumstances have with the very fact of murder and violence; why, due to the fact that the duke was offended, thousands of people from the other side of Europe killed and ruined the people of the Smolensk and Moscow provinces and were killed by them.
For us, descendants - not historians, not carried away by the process of research and therefore contemplating the event with unobscured common sense, its causes appear in innumerable quantities. The more we delve into the search for reasons, the more of them are revealed to us, and every single reason or a whole series of reasons seems to us equally fair in itself, and equally false in its insignificance in comparison with the enormity of the event, and equally false in its invalidity ( without the participation of all other coincident causes) to produce the accomplished event. The same reason as Napoleon’s refusal to withdraw his troops beyond the Vistula and give back the Duchy of Oldenburg seems to us to be the desire or reluctance of the first French corporal to enter secondary service: for, if he did not want to go to service, and another would not, and a third , and the thousandth corporal and soldier, there would have been so many fewer people in Napoleon’s army, and there could have been no war.
If Napoleon had not been offended by the demand to retreat beyond the Vistula and had not ordered the troops to advance, there would have been no war; but if all the sergeants had not wished to enter secondary service, there could not have been a war. There also could not have been a war if there had not been the intrigues of England, and there had not been the Prince of Oldenburg and the feeling of insult in Alexander, and there would not have been autocratic power in Russia, and there would not have been the French Revolution and the subsequent dictatorship and empire, and everything that produced French revolution, and so on. Without one of these reasons nothing could happen. Therefore, all these reasons - billions of reasons - coincided in order to produce what was. And, therefore, nothing was the exclusive cause of the event, and the event had to happen only because it had to happen. Millions of people, having renounced their human feelings and their reason, had to go to the East from the West and kill their own kind, just as several centuries ago crowds of people went from East to West, killing their own kind.

Class - Birds / Subclass - New palates / Superorder - Penguinaceae

History of the study

The spectacled penguin, or donkey penguin, or black-footed penguin (lat. Spheniscus demersus) is a species of bird from the spectacled penguin genus.

Spreading

The distribution area is the coast of South Africa and Namibia and nearby islands in the area of the cold Benguela Current. Lives in colonies. Today the population is estimated at 140-180 thousand individuals. Moreover, in the 1900s the population was estimated to be at least 2 million individuals.

Appearance

The spectacled penguin (Spheniscus demersus) is comparable in size to the Magellanic and Humboldt penguins. Its length, on average, is 68 cm, and its weight is 2.1-3.7 kg. Males are slightly larger than females. They also have a taller bill, but the differences are clearly visible when the birds stand side by side. Spectacled penguins are black above and white below. They have a narrow black horseshoe-shaped stripe on their chest, which goes down the sides of the body to the paws. Some birds have a double stripe, like the Magellanic penguin. Besides, white stripe goes around the back of the head and cheeks and then goes forward to the eyes and further in the direction of the beak, but does not reach the beak.

Reproduction

The nesting period of the spectacled penguin is extended. In most colonies, birds at any stage of the nesting cycle can be found throughout the year. However, there are still some regional differences: peak breeding in Namibia occurs in November-December, while in South Africa it occurs in March-May. Spectacled penguins are monogamous and the same pair will usually return to the same colony and nest. 80-90% of pairs remain together for the next breeding season. There are cases where partners stayed together for more than 10 years. The clutch consists of 2 eggs. Both parents alternately incubate her for 40 days. The duration of partner changes depends on feeding conditions and averages 2.5 days. Both parents take care of the chicks, and for the first 15 days, until thermoregulation is established, one of them constantly warms the chicks. Further, up to a month of age, while the chicks are still small and one of the parents protects them from attack by seagulls. After this, both parents can go to sea to feed the chicks. At this time, the penguin chicks form “nurseries”, which serve mainly to protect them not from predation by seagulls, but from attacks from adult birds. “Fledglings” leave the colony at the age of 60-130 days. The duration of the nesting period, the weight of fledglings, and the productivity of the breeding season depend on the availability and quality of food. After leaving the colony, young birds become independent. They spend 12-22 months at sea, after which they return to their home colony, where they molt into adult plumage.

Lifestyle

Penguins in water can reach speeds of up to 20 km/h, dive deeper than 100 m and hold their breath for 2-3 minutes. During feeding they can swim 70-120 km in the ocean. They feed mainly on small fish (fry of herring, anchovies, sardines, etc.). The main enemies are humans, sharks, seagulls (for chicks), fur seals(as a competitor for prey and as a predator) and feral cats (for chicks and eggs in some colonies).

Nutrition

Spectacled penguins feed mainly on pelagic schooling fish species, such as anchovies, sardines, as well as mollusks and crustaceans.

Number

The species is listed in the International Red Book. On at the moment There are 27 spectacled penguin colonies, of which only three are on the mainland coast. And in another 10 places the birds no longer nest, although they nested there before. Currently, the world population is about 70,000 pairs, but this is only 10% of what it was in 1900, when on only one island. About 1.5 million birds nested in Dassin. By 1956 The penguin population halved, followed by a further halving in numbers by the late 1970s, when about 220,000 adult birds were counted. By the end of the 1980s. the number dropped to 194 thousand individuals, and in the early 1990s. it amounted to 197 thousand adult birds. By the end of the 1990s. the number began to increase slightly and in 1999 reached 224 thousand individuals. The reasons for this decline in the number of spectacled penguins are well known. At first, this was caused by the extraction of birds and their eggs for food, as well as the collection of guano in their colonies. Currently, the main threats come from commercial fishing and oil pollution. Penguins also compete for food and breeding sites with fur seals, whose numbers have increased manifold in recent decades. To top it off, fur seals also hunt penguins. Feral cats are also becoming a problem in some colonies. The eggs and chicks of spectacled penguins are eaten by kelp gulls and sacred ibises; on mainland penguin colonies, mongooses, genets and leopards eat them.

Kingdom: Animalia Type: Chordata Class: Birds Order: Penguinaceae Family: Penguinidae Genus: Spectacled penguins Spectacled penguin

Latin name Spheniscus demersus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Spectacled penguin. Vulnerable species. Characteristic signs species - a kind of black “mask” bordered with white, and a narrow black stripe crossing the top of the chest and going down along the sides of the body. IN small quantity Spectacled penguins nest on the southern and southwestern coasts of Africa, but the main colonies are located on the nearest islands. At the beginning of the century, spectacled penguins were one of the most popular species.

About 1.5 million birds nested on the island of Dusseneiland alone. The collection of penguin eggs has been carried out for many years in industrial scale- until the middle of our century, hundreds of thousands of eggs annually. Uncontrolled exploitation of colonies, a reduction in food supplies due to overfishing, as well as pollution of coastal areas of the sea with petroleum products have led to a sharp decline in the number of spectacled penguins.

In 1956 total number adult spectacled penguins in Namibia and South Africa were determined to be 295 thousand individuals; census materials from 1978 showed that about 114 thousand birds remained in these areas. Since 1969, the procurement of eggs has been prohibited, and since 1973 this species has been protected by a special act of South Africa. Several islands with penguin colonies are included in the Cape Marine Reserve.

habitats

Red List ratings

Year of Publication: 2015 Date of Rating: 2013-11-03 Endangered A2ace + 3ce + 4ace Ver 3.1

Previously published Red List assessments:

2013 – Endangered (EN) In danger, or endangered 2012 – Endangered (EN) In danger, or endangered 2010 – Endangered (EN) In danger, or endangered 2008 – Vulnerable (VU) Vulnerable 2005 – Vulnerable (VU) Vulnerable 2004 – Vulnerable (VU)Vulnerable 2000 – Vulnerable (VU)Vulnerable 1994 – Lower Risk/near threatened (LR/nt)low risk/close to threat. 1988 – Threatened (T)under threat

Literature: A. A. Vinokurov Rare and endangered birds. Edited by Academician V. E. Sokolov. IUCN Red List - https://www.iucnredlist.org/details/22678129/0

It is the only member of the large penguin family that has settled in southwest Africa. They settle on the coasts in colonies. Its body length is 60–70cm, weight 2–5kg. Females are slightly smaller than males. Belly, chest white, back, head and paws are black.

Short feathers fit tightly to each other, protecting the skin from getting wet, heat and hypothermia. Of course, everyone knows that penguins don't fly. But they are excellent swimmers and divers; they can survive under water without air for up to 3 minutes, while diving to a depth of 30 - 100 m. While swimming, it reaches speeds of up to 20 km/h, jumps out of the water and dives again.

He has a streamlined body, strong wings with which he pushes off, and his paws act as a rudder. On land, they waddle awkwardly, stepping with webbed paws. Spectacled penguins feed on small fish, such as anchovies, sardines, and fish fry. They hunt for crustaceans and mollusks.

His most formidable enemies are humans, mongooses, leopards and seagulls, and ibises. People collect eggs and feed on them, while predators also feast on the chicks.

Penguins nest in rocky areas. Sometimes they dig holes, but more often they use small holes hidden by vegetation. Having formed a couple, they remain faithful to each other for life. They return from the sea to their previous nesting site; if the meeting does not take place due to the death of a partner, then a new companion can be found. Typically, the female lays two eggs.

Parents take turns incubating their offspring for 40 days. The newly born chick climbs onto the paws of its mother or father. The first two weeks he is in dire need of protection and warmth, and of course food. The little penguin is dressed in gray and white fluff. At about a month of age, the chicks form a nursery, huddled together. Now the parents are more free and go for feeding 100 or more kilometers from the coast.

The babies molt and get stronger, leave the colony at 3-4 months of age, now they are independent and independent - they get their own food and defend themselves. They will stay at sea for 10 to 22 months, then return to where they were born. Before molting, adult individuals swim in the sea for a month, intensively eating and getting fat. They need to survive for 20 days, which is how long the molt lasts. Losing weight, they will wait until their plumage is completely restored and then go back to sea.