Humboldt penguin

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Humboldt penguin
Humboldt penguin

Humboldt penguin

Systematics
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Penguins (Sphenisciformes)
Family : Penguins (Spheniscidae)
Genre : African penguins ( Spheniscus )
Type : Humboldt penguin
Scientific name
Spheniscus humboldti
Meyen , 1834

The Humboldt Penguin ( Spheniscus humboldti ), including Humboldt Penguin, belongs with three other species, the Brillenpinguin ( Spheniscus demersus ), the Magellan Penguin ( Spheniscus magellanicus ) and the Galapagos penguin ( Spheniscus mendiculus ) to the species of penguins (Spheniscus). With 17 other penguin species it belongs to the order Sphenisciformes and the family Spheniscidae.

Naming and discovery

The Humboldt penguin was first described scientifically in 1834 by Franz Julius Ferdinand Meyen . According to Meyen, he named the penguin after its first discoverer, Alexander von Humboldt , who is said to have observed this species in the area around Callao in present-day Peru during his trip to America from 1799–1804 .

morphology

The Humboldt penguin resembles all other African penguins in appearance and can reach a size of up to 65 cm and a weight of 3.5 to 5.9 kg, with an average weight of 4 kg. Its average life expectancy is 16 years. Like all penguins, the Humboldt penguin is highly adapted to a life in water. With their short tail and their feet set backwards, which enable them to walk upright, this species is similar in structure to all other penguins. The plumage is built up in two layers. The first layer of feathers is flattened and protects the animal from external influences such as wind and water, while the second layer is used for thermal insulation.

A distinction between the individual species of the genus Spheniscus is easily possible on the basis of the different facial drawings and throat ligaments. The black and white drawing of the Humboldt penguin is similar to that of the Magellanic penguin, which is also native to South America, but shows some clear differences. The Humboldt penguin lacks the black band that runs across the neck of the Magellanic penguin, but the U-shaped chest stripe is slightly wider. The Humboldt penguin has no feathers in the area around its beak. The pink color of these areas extends to the eyes. The Humboldt penguin's feet are black, the webbed feet are often spotted with white.

  • Humboldt penguin ( Spheniscus humboldti )

  • Magellanic penguin ( Spheniscus magellanicus )

Habitat, distribution, food and predators

A Humboldt penguin in the water

Habitat and Distribution

Humboldt penguin under water in the "Zoo am Meer" Bremerhaven

Humboldt penguins live on the Pacific coasts in Peru and northern Chile and on the offshore islands along a 4500 km long coastline between the 5th and 42nd parallel south. This area is mainly influenced by the northward flowing, cold Humboldt Current and by the occurring El Niño phenomena. In the first half of the 20th century, Robert Murphy still speaks of a distribution of the Humboldt penguin between the 7th and 34th degrees south. In the south of Chile the ranges of Humboldt penguins and Magellanic penguins overlap. The maritime distribution is limited to coastal waters near the breeding colonies, with the animals mostly following the Humboldt Current.

Food and foraging

The diet of this species consists, as with all species of the genus Spheniscus , mainly of school-forming, pelagic fish in the size of 36-270 mm and squids and crustaceans . The prey animals are primarily anchovies and mackerel . On their hunting expeditions, the penguins dive a maximum of 55 m deep and reach an average swimming speed of 5 km / h.

Predators

The Humboldt penguin is from the South American fur seals , sea lions , killer whales and sharks hunted.

Reproduction, existence and endangerment

Humboldt penguins

Reproduction

Spheniscus humboldti

The Humboldt penguin breeds twice a year, once in spring and once in autumn, whereby the breeding success in autumn is severely affected by climatic and meteorological conditions. Humboldt penguins are largely monogamous, however, after unsuccessful breeding, partners can also change. The clutch consists of two eggs that are incubated for 40–42 days.

Duration

According to the IUCN, Humboldt penguins are among the threatened bird species and are classified as "endangered". According to figures from 2000, the population is estimated at 3,300 to 12,000 individuals. The population density of the Humboldt penguin varies greatly, however. According to censuses from 2003, a total of 46,400 animals should live in Peru and Chile. The species is legally protected in these countries.

Danger

The reasons for endangering this species are numerous. In addition to human hunting in the past and overfishing for food production today, the intensive mining of guano in the 19th century was primarily responsible for the decline in stocks. This resulted in the loss of suitable breeding sites and the decline in successful reproduction. The El Niño phenomena on the west coast of South America represent an additional threat . For example, the last strong El Niño events in 1997/98 had a demonstrably strong negative impact on stocks.

Due to the endangerment of the Humboldt penguin, offspring in zoos are extremely important for species conservation. Research and breeding of these birds (for example within the framework of the European Endangered Species Program (EEP) ) have meanwhile become an integral part of animal husbandry in zoos.

Others

The Humboldt penguins at the Zoo am Meer in Bremerhaven and some at the state horticultural show in Winsen (Luhe) achieved a large media presence . When there was no breeding success in a larger group of animals because the majority of the males there mated with each other and then tried to hatch stones, female penguins were procured from the Swedish zoo in Kolmården to mate . In protests from the lesbian and gay movement , the zoo management was accused of having separated the homosexual couples and of trying to “force” the animals to mate with females. The zoo management denied such an undertaking. Despite the female penguins, the "gay penguins" have remained loyal to each other.

The rearing of a chick by the gay penguin pair “Z” and “Vielpunkt” who lived in the zoo met with renewed media coverage. Zookeepers had laid an egg that had been kicked out of the clutch by a heterosexual couple in the homosexual penguins' nest. The couple accepted the egg and took turns hatching it. After 35 days, the chick hatched on April 25, 2009. It was guarded and fed in the nest by the two fathers until it finally "fledged". The zookeepers could not find any difference in rearing compared to heterosexual penguin pairs.

literature

  • Wilson Culik: The World of Penguins: Survivors in Ice and Sea. BLV, Munich 1993, ISBN 3-405-14476-0 .
  • Josep del Hoyo , Andrew Elliot, Jordi Sargatal : Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Lynx Edicions. Barcelona 1992, ISBN 84-87334-10-5 .
  • Janos Hennicke: Variability in the hunting behavior of the Humboldt penguin (Sphenisus humboldti) under different oceanographic conditions. Kiel 2001, DNB 97199062X (Dissertation University of Kiel 2001. Full text online PDF, free of charge, 1.7 MB)
  • Doris Linzmeier: Partner selection and reproduction in Humboldt penguins (Spheniscus humboldti) in zoo colonies. Schüling, Münster 2002, ISBN 3-934849-18-0 . (Dissertation University of Cologne 2002)
  • Guillermo Luna-Jorquera: Balancing the energy budget for a warm blooded bird in a hot desert and cold seas: the case of Humboldt penguin. Kiel 1996, DNB 95172584X . (Dissertation University of Kiel, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, 1997, (Thermoregulation of the Humboldt penguins, English))
  • FJF Meyen: Contributions to zoology collected on a trip around the earth. In: Negotiations of the Imperial Leopoldine-Carolinian Academy of Natural Scientists. Eighth Volume Supplement. Breslau / Bonn 1834.
  • Robert C. Murphy : Oceanic Birds of South America. Volume 1, The Macmillan Company, New York 1936.
  • Alison Sattersfield, David Capper: Threatened Birds of the World. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2000, ISBN 0-946888-39-6 .

Web links

Commons : Humboldt-Pinguin  - album with pictures, videos and audio files

References

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g Daniel Gilpin: Penguins . Parragon Books Ltd., ISBN 978-1-4075-0629-6 .
  2. ^ Pia Heinemann : Why there are gay penguins . In: The world. on-line. June 17, 2009.
  3. ↑ Happy parents: gay penguins adopt chicks. In: Spiegel online. June 4, 2009.