Species
Southern Rockhopper Penguin
Regional Nesting Sites: The species was recently split into 2: the Southern Rockhopper Penguin (E. chrysocome) and the Northern Rockhopper Penguin (E. moseleyi). The northern species breeds on the sub-Antarctic islands of the Tristan da Cunha group (Atlantic Ocean) and at Amsterdam and St. Paul islands (Indian Ocean). The Southern Rockhopper Penguin breeds on the Malvinas Islands, Staten Island and on islands of southern Chile (Ildelfonso, Diego Ramírez, and others) as well as at sub-Antarctic islands in the Indian Ocean and in the Australasian region.
Diet: They feed mainly on crustaceans, fish and squid, which they catch on dives that do not exceed 30 m.
World breeding population: Estimated at 1.2 million pairs.
Conservation Status: Vulnerable (IUCN, 2008). Over the last 70 years the population on the Malvinas Islands has decreased by nearly 90%.
Main threats: Increasing disturbance from ecotourism, fisheries, and hydrocarbon exploitation and pollution.
