King Penguin

The King Penguin is the second largest species of penguin at about 11 to 16 kg (24 to 35 lb), second only to the Emperor Penguin. There are two subspecies - A. p. patagonicus and A. p. halli; patagonicus is found in the South Atlantic and halli elsewhere.

King penguins eat small fish, mainly lanternfish, and squid and rely less than most Southern Ocean predators on krill and other crustaceans. On foraging trips they repeatedly dive to over 100 metres (350 feet), often over 200 metres (700 feet). Thus the King Penguin dives far deeper than any other penguin, notably excluding their closest relative, the larger Emperor Penguin.

King Penguins breed on the subantarctic islands at the northern reaches of Antarctica, as well as Tierra del Fuego, South Georgia, and other temperate islands of the region. The total population is estimated to be 2.23 million pairs and is increasing.

Description

The King Penguin is the second largest species of penguin at about 90 cm (3 ft) tall and weighing 11 to 16 kg (24 to 35 lb), second only to the Emperor Penguin. Like all penguin species, it has a streamlined body to minimise drag while swimming, webbed feet to propel more force when swimming, and wings that have become stiff, flat flippers. There is little difference in plumage between the male and female, although the latter are slightly smaller. The upperparts are steel blue-grey, darkening to black on the head, sharply delineated from the pale underparts; the belly is white colouring to orange on the upper breast with bright orange ear patches. The 12–13 cm (4¾-5 in) black bill is long and slender, and curved downwards like a banana peel. The lower mandible bears a striking pink or orange-coloured mandibular plate.

An immature bird will have yellow- rather than orange-tinged markings, and grey tips to its black brown feathers. It moults into adult plumage at after reaching two years of age.

The chick is first covered with brown-grey down, before moulting into a thick, woolly brown coat borne until around 10–12 months of age. Their mandibular plates are black until the moult into immature plumage.

Adaptations to the environment

King penguins have adapted well to their extreme living conditions in the subantarctic. To keep warm, the penguins have four layers of feathering. King Penguins have 70 feathers per every square inch. The outer layer of feathers are oiled and waterproof, unlike the feathering of a duck, which reduces to the amount of water absorbed that would otherwise increase their weight. The inner three layers are down feathers, very effective insulation. A chick is born without the oily outer layer, and therefore cannot fish until maturity. A King Penguin chick has a dark coloration of downy feathers. They remain on land and do not go into the water until their down feathers have fallen off.

Drinking

Like most penguins, the King Penguin is able to drink salt water because of their supraorbital gland which filters excess salt from their blood stream by way of a capillary just above the penguin's eyes. The excess salt is then expelled through the penguin's nose in a very salty brine.

Distribution and habitat

King Penguins breed on the subantarctic islands between 45 and 55^oS, at the northern reaches of Antarctica, as well as Tierra del Fuego, the Falkland Islands, and other temperate islands of the region. The total population is estimated to be 2.23 million pairs and is increasing. The largest breeding populations are on Crozet Island, with around 455,000 pairs, 228,000 pairs on the Prince Edward Islands, 240,000 - 280,000 on the Kerguelen Islands and over 100, 000 on the South Georgia Islands. Macquarie Island has around 70,000 pairs. The non-breeding range is poorly known though presumably the subantarctic waters of the southern Indian, South Atlantic and Asian part of the Southern Ocean. Vagrant birds have been recorded from the Antarctic peninsula as well as South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

The Nature Protection Society released King Penguins in Gjesvær in Finnmark, and Røst in Lofoten in northern Norway in August 1936. Birds were reported in the area several times in the 1940s though none have been seen since 1949.

Behavior

The American sicophysiologist Gerry Kooyman revolutionized the study of penguin foraging behaviour in 1971 when he published his results from attaching automatic dive-recording devices to Emperor Penguins, and recording a dive of 235 meters (770 feet) by a King Penguin in 1982. The current maximum dive recorded is 343 metres in the Falkland Islands region, and a maximum time submerged of 552 seconds recorded at the Crozet Islands.The King Penguin dives to depths of 100-300 meters (350-1000 feet), spending around 5 minutes submerged, during daylight hours, and less than 30 meters (100 feet) at night.

The majority (around 88% in one study) of dives undertaken by King Penguins are flat-bottomed; that is, the penguin dives to a certain depth and remains there for a period of time hunting (roughly 50% of total dive time) before returning to the surface. They have been described as U-shaped or W-shaped, relating to the course of the dive. The bird dives in a V-shaped or 'spike' pattern in the remaining 12% of dives; that is the bird dives at an angle through the water column, reaches a certain depth and then returns to the surface. Other penguins dive in this latter foraging pattern in contrast. Observations at Crozet Islands revealed most King Penguins were seen within 30 km (18 mi) of the colony. Using the average swimming speed, Kooyman estimated the distance travelled to foraging areas at 28 km (17 mi).

Its average swimming speed is 6.5–10 km/h (4–6 mph). On shallower dives under 60 m (200 ft), it averages 2 km/h (1.25 mph) descending and ascending, while on deeper dives over 150 m (500 ft) deep, it averages 5 km/h (3 mph) in both directions. On land, the King Penguin alternates between walking with a wobbling gait and tobogganing—sliding over the ice on its belly, propelled by its feet and wing-like flippers. Like all penguins, it is flightless.

Feeding

King penguins eat small fish, and squid and rely less than most Southern Ocean predators on krill and other crustaceans. Fish constitute 80-100% of the diet, except in winter months of July and August, when they make up only 30%. Lanternfish are the main fish taken, principally the species Electrona carlsbergi and Krefftichthys anderssoni, as well as Protomyctophum tenisoni. Slender escolar (Paradiplospinus gracilis) of the Gempylidae, and Champsocephalus gunneri, is also consumed. Cephalopods consumed include those of the genus Moroteuthis, the hooked squid species Kondakovia longimana, the Sevenstar Flying Squid (Martialia hyadesii), young Gonatus antarcticus and Onychoteuthis species.

Predators

The King Penguin's predators include birds and aquatic mammals; Skua species (Stercorarius spp.) take small chicks and eggs, while the Snowy Sheathbill scavenges for dead chicks and unattended eggs. The Leopard Seal takes adult birds at sea.

Courtship and breeding

The King Penguin is able to breed at three years of age, although only a very small minority (5% recorded at Crozet Islands) actually do then; the average age of first breeding is around 6 years. King Penguins are serially monogamous. They have only one mate each year, and stay faithful to that mate. However, fidelity between years is only about 29%. The long breeding cycle may contribute to this low rate.

The King Penguin has an unusually prolonged breeding cycle, taking some 14–16 months from laying to offspring fledging. Although pairs will attempt to breed annually, they are generally only successful one year in two, or two years in three in a triennial pattern on South Georgia. The reproductive cycle begins in September to November, as birds return to colonies for a prenuptial moult. Those that were unsuccessful in breeding the previous season will often arrive earlier. They then return to the sea for three weeks before coming ashore in November or December. The female penguin lays one pyriform (pear-shaped) white egg weighing 300 g (⅔ lb). It is initially soft, but hardens and darkens to a pale greenish colour. It measures around 10 x 7 cm (4 x 3 in). The egg is incubated for around 55 days with both birds sharing incubation in shifts of 6–18 days each. Hatching may take up to 2–3 days to complete, and chicks are born semi-altricial and nidicolous. In other words, they have only a thin covering of down and are entirely dependent on their parents for food and warmth. The young chick is brooded in what is called the guard phase, spending its time balanced on its parents' feet and sheltered by its pouch. During this time, the parents alternate every 3–7 days, one incubating while the other forages. This period lasts for 30–40 days before the chicks form crèches, a group of many chicks together. A penguin can leave its chick at a crèche while it fishes as a few adult penguins stay behind to look after them. Other varieties of penguins also practice this method of communal care for offspring.

By April the chicks are almost fully grown, but lose weight by fasting over the winter months, gaining it again during spring in September. Fledging then takes place in late spring/early summer.

King Penguins form huge breeding colonies - for example the colony on South Georgia Island at Salisbury Plain holds over 100,000 breeding pairs and the one at St. Andrew's Bay over 100,000 birds. Because of the long breeding cycle, colonies are continuously occupied.

The King Penguin feeds its chicks by eating a fish, digesting it slightly and regurgitating the food into the chick's mouth.

Because of their large size, King Penguin chicks take 14–16 months before they are ready to go to sea. This is markedly different from smaller penguins, who rear their chicks through a single summer when food is plentiful. King Penguins time their mating so the chicks will develop over the harshest season for fishing. In this way, by the time the young penguins are finally mature enough to leave their parents, it is summer when food is plentiful and conditions are more favorable for the young to survive alone.

Relationship with humans

Considered a flagship species, 176 individuals were counted in captivity in North American Zoos and Aquaria in 1999. The species has been bred in captivity at SeaWorld in San Diego, USA. The species is exhibited at SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida, USA, Indianapolis Zoo, USA, Detroit Zoo, USA, Saint Louis Zoo, USA , Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland, Berlin Zoological Garden in Germany, Zurich Zoo in Switzerland, 63 Seaworld in Seoul, South Korea and Melbourne Aquarium in Australia.

It is also the emblem of Edinburgh Zoo.

Roger Tory Peterson's ornithological nickname was "King Penguin".

Notable King Penguins

• Sir Nils Olav, mascot and Colonel in Chief of the Royal Norwegian Guard
• Misha, a central character and metaphor in two novels by Ukrainian writer Andrey Kurkov
• The King Penguin is also the species of penguin represented by the popular character Pondus, an image found on various paraphernalia in many retail stores throughout Canada. Pondus originates in Danish children's books written and photographed by Ivar Myrhøj and published in 1997 byLademann publisher in the late 1960s. These penguins appeared in the production of Batman Returns.
• Opus the Penguin, a fictional character in the comic strips Bloom County, Outland, and Opus, is a king penguin and the most famous character of the comic strips.

Full Story >>

Toco Toucan

The Toco Toucan is the largest and arguably best known species in the toucan family. It is found in semi-open habitats throughout a large part of central and eastern South America. It is a common attraction in zoos.

Description

The Toco Toucan has a striking plumage with a mainly black body, a white throat, chest and uppertail-coverts, and red undertail-coverts. What appears to be a blue iris is actually thin blue skin around the eye. This blue skin is surrounded by another ring of bare, orange skin. The most noticeable feature, however, is its huge bill, which is yellow-orange, tending to deeper reddish-orange on its lower sections and culmen, and with a black base and large spot on the tip. It looks heavy, but as in other toucans it is relatively light because the inside largely is hollow. The tongue is nearly as long as the bill and very flat. With a total length of 55-65 cm (22-26 in), incl. a bill that measures almost 20 cm (8 in), and a weight of 500-860 g (17.5-30 oz), it is the largest species of toucan and the largest representative of the order Piciformes. The average Toco Toucan is 700 grams. Males are larger than females, but otherwise both are alike. Juveniles are duller and shorter-billed than adults. Its voice consists of a deep, coarse croaking, often repeated every few seconds. It also has a rattling call and will bill-clack.

Distribution

It occurs in northern and eastern Bolivia, extreme south-eastern Peru, northern Argentina, eastern and central Paraguay, eastern and southern Brazil (excluding southern Rio Grande do Sul, the dry regions dominated by Caatinga vegetation and coastal regions between Ceará and Rio de Janeiro). Other disjunct populations occur along the lower Amazon River (Ilha de Marajó west approximately to the Madeira River), far northern Brazil in Roraima, and coastal regions of the Guianas. It only penetrates the Amazon in relatively open areas (e.g. along river corridors). It is resident, but local movements may occur.

Habitat and status

It is, unlike the other members of the genus Ramphastos, essentially a non-forest species. It can be found in a wide range of semi-open habitats such as woodland, savanna and other open habitats with scattered trees, Cerrado, plantations, forest-edge, and even wooded gardens. It is mainly a species of lowlands, but occurs up to 1750 m (5750 ft) near the Andes in Bolivia and Panama. Because it prefers open habitats it is likely to benefit from the widespread deforestation in tropical South America. It has a large range and except in the outer regions of its range, it typically is fairly common. It is therefore considered to be of Least Concern by BirdLife International. It is easily seen in the Pantanal.

Behavior

The Toco Toucan eats fruit using its bill to pluck them from trees, but also insects, frogs, small reptiles and nestlings, and eggs of birds. It also has been known to capture and eat small adult birds in captivity. The long bill is useful for reaching things that otherwise would be out-of-reach. It is also used to skin fruit and scare off predators. It is typically seen in pairs or small groups. In flight it alternates between a burst of rapid flaps with the relatively short, rounded wings, and gliding. They are poor flyers, and usually hop from tree to tree. Nesting is seasonal, but timing differs between regions. The nest is typically placed high in a tree and consists of a cavity, at least part of which is excavated by the parent birds themselves. It has also been recorded nesting in holes in earth-banks and terrestrial termite-nests. Their reproduction cycle is annual. The female usually lays two to four eggs a few days after mating. The eggs are incubated by both sexes and hatch after 17–18 days. These birds are very protective of themselves and of their babies.

Bill function

The bill is largest beak relative to body size of all birds providing 30 to 50% of its body surface area. It was called by Buffon a “grossly monstrous” appendage. Diverse functions have been suggested. Charles Darwin suggested it was a sexual ornament: “toucans may owe the enormous size of their beaks to sexual selection, for the sake of displaying the diversified and vivid stripes of colour with which these organs are ornamented". Further suggestions have included aid in peeling fruit, intimidating other birds when robbing their nests, social selection related to defense of territory, and as a visual warning.

Research has shown that one function is as a surface area for heat exchange. The bill has the ability to modify blood flow and so regulate heat distribution in the bird, allowing it to use its bill as a thermal radiator. In terms of surface area used for this function, the bill relative to the bird's size is amongst the largest of any animal and has a network of superficial blood vessels supporting the thin horny sheath on the bill made of keratin called the rhamphotheca.

In its capacity to remove body heat the bill is comparable to that of elephant ears. The ability to radiate heat depends upon air speed: if this is low only 25% of the adult bird's resting heat production to as much as four times this heart production. In comparison the bill of a duck and the ears of elephant can shed only 9 to 91% of resting heat production. The bill normally is responsible for 30 to 60% of heat loss. The practice of Toco Toucan's of placing their bills under their wings may serve to insulate the bill and reduce heat loss during sleep. It has been observed that "complexities of the vasculature and controlling mechanisms needed to adjust the blood flow to the bill may not be completely developed until adulthood."

Aviculture

The Toco Toucan is sometimes kept in captivity, but has a high fruit diet and is sensitive to haemochromatosis (an iron storage disease). Also, pet Toco Toucans must not be permitted to eat mouse (or rat) meat, due to a risk of bacterial infection. There is an ongoing population management plan that should help to revert the decreasing captive population of the Toco Toucan for Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) member institutions. This will be the second management plan that is occurring since 2001.

Full Story >>

White-throated Toucan

The White-throated Toucan is a near-passerine bird found throughout the Amazon in south-eastern Colombia, eastern Ecuador, eastern Peru, northern Bolivia, southern and eastern Venezuela, northern and western Brazil, including the Amazon Basin's adjacent Tocantins-Araguaia River drainage, and the Guianas. It prefers tropical humid forest, but also occurs in woodland and locally in riverine forest within the Cerrado.

It was formerly considered to be two species, with the southern and western nominate subspecies, R. t. tucanus, named the Red-billed Toucan, and the northern and eastern subspecies, R. t. cuvieri, Cuvier's Toucan (when considered a species; R. cuvieri, Wagler, 1827). However, the two subspecies, which differ principally in the bill colour, interbreed freely wherever they meet and therefore merit only subspecies status. The subspecies R. t. inca from Bolivia is of questionable validity and may represent a stable hybrid population between tucanus and culminatus.

Description

Like other toucans, the White-throated Toucan is brightly marked and has a huge bill. It has a total length of 55–60 cm (21–24 in) and weighs 600 g (22 oz). The bill is typically 14–18 cm (5½–7 in) long. The only species of toucan that surpasses it in size is the Toco Toucan.

It has black plumage with a white throat and breast bordered below with a narrow red line. The rump is bright yellow and the crissum is red. The bare skin around the eye is blue. The bill has a yellow tip, upper ridge and base of the upper mandible, and the base of the lower mandible is blue. The rest of the bill is mainly black in R. t. cuvieri and mainly reddish-brown in R. t. tucanus, with intergrades showing a mixed coloration. Males are larger and longer-billed than females, but otherwise the sexes are alike.

Juveniles are noticeably shorter-billed, more sooty-black, and have duller plumage.

The White-throated Toucan of the race cuvieri is virtually identical to the related Channel-billed Toucan of the race culminatus, but the latter is smaller and has a proportionally shorter bill with a more strongly keeled culmen. The call is often the best distinction between the species. White-throated has a yelping eeoo, hue hue, whereas Channel-billed has a croaking song.

Behaviour

Small flocks or more commonly pairs of birds move through the forest with a heavy, rather weak, undulating flight, rarely flying more than 100 m (330 ft) at a time. This species is primarily an arboreal fruit-eater, but will also take insects, lizards, bird eggs, and other small vertebrate prey.

Breeding

The 2–4 white eggs are laid in an unlined cavity high in a decayed section of a living tree, or in an old woodpecker nest in a dead tree.

Both sexes incubate the eggs for at 14–15 days, and the toucan chicks remain in the nest after hatching. They are blind and naked at birth, with short bills, and have specialised pads on their heels to protect them from the rough floor of the nest. They are fed by both parents, and fledge after about 6 weeks. The parents continue feeding the juveniles for several weeks after they have left the nest.

Full Story >>

Black-mandibled Toucan

The Black-mandibled Toucan is a native of the north of South America. Its is distribution ranges along the eastern slope of the Andes from Peru, north through Ecuador and Colombia, to Venezuela as far as the coastal ranges.

It occurs at altitudes of 100-2400 m. in humid montane forests, with a preference for the canopy and edge.

It feeds of fruits. It has a total length of 47-61 cm. The beak measures approximately 18 cm.

Full Story >>

Chestnut-mandibled Toucan

The Chestnut-mandibled Toucan, or Swainson’s Toucan is a near-passerine bird which breeds from eastern Honduras to northern Colombia to western Ecuador. This species is replaced from southern Colombia to eastern Peru by the closely related Black-mandibled Toucan, R. ambiguus, with which it is sometimes considered conspecific. The scientific and alternative English names commemorate the English ornithologist and artist William Swainson.

Description

Like other toucans, the Chestnut-mandibled is brightly marked and has a large bill. The male is 56 cm long and weighs 750g (26.5 oz). The smaller female is typically 52 cm long and weighs 580g (20.5 oz).

The sexes are alike in appearance, mainly black with maroon hints to the head, upper back and lower breast. The face and upper breast are bright yellow, with narrow white and broader red lines forming a lower border. The upper tail is white and the lower abdomen is red. The legs are blue. The body plumage is similar to that of the smaller Keel-billed Toucan, but the bill pattern is quite different, being diagonally divided into bright yellow and maroon.

Juvenile birds are sooty-black, and have duller plumage, particularly with respect to the bib, red border, and lower mandible. They are fed by the parents for several weeks after leaving the nest.

The call of the Chestnut-mandibled Toucan is a yelping yo-YIP, a-yip, a-yip, or a Dios te dé, Dios te dé (Spanish for "God give you..."). It is given to maintain contact as the flock travels in "follow-my-leader" style through the trees, but also in chorus at the evening roosts.

Behavior

Small flocks, usually consisting of 3-12 birds, move through the forest with an undulating flight, rarely travelling more than 100 m at a time. This species is primarily an arboreal fruit-eater, but will also take insects, lizards, small birds and frogs. Flocks will follow Keel-billed Toucans to exploit their sources of food.

Reproduction

The Chestnut-mandibled Toucan is a resident breeder in moist lowland forest. The 2-4 white eggs are laid in an unlined cavity high in a decayed section of a living tree, or occasionally in an old woodpecker nest in a dead tree.

Both sexes incubate the eggs for at 14–15 days, and the toucan chicks remain in the nest after hatching. They are blind and naked at birth, and have short bills and specialised pads on their heels to protect them from the rough floor of the nest. They are fed by both parents, and fledge after about 6 weeks.

Full Story >>

Red-breasted Toucan

The Red-breasted Toucan, also known as the Green-billed Toucan, is found in southern and eastern Brazil, eastern Paraguay and far north-eastern Argentina. It is primarily found in Atlantic Forest. Overall, it is fairly common, and therefore considered to be of least concern by IUCN.

It is one of the smallest species of Ramphastos toucans, weighing approximately 350 grams. Its beak is one of the shortest of Ramphastos toucans at only about 10 cm (4 in) in length.

The Red-breasted Toucan derives its name from the large area of red feathers, which are really on the abdomen. Its breast is actually orange, with yellow at the sides. The beak is mostly pale greenish-horn, leading to its alternative common name, the Green-billed Toucan. In aviculture, their requirement of spacious cages, a high fruit diet and sensitivity to hemochromatosis (iron storage disease) make them difficult to maintain for novice keepers.

Full Story >>

Channel-billed Toucan Information

The Channel-billed Toucan is a near-passerine bird which breeds in Trinidad and in tropical South America as far south as southern Brazil and central Bolivia.

Description

Like other toucans, the Channel-billed is brightly marked and has a huge bill. It is typically 48 cm (19 in) long with a 9-14 cm (3½-5½ in) bill.

• Nominate race (R. v. vitellinus): Its upperparts, belly, tail and most of the bill are black, and the uppertail and undertail coverts are red. The bare eye-patch and bill base are blue, the throat is white, most of the central breast is yellow-orange fading to white laterally and the lower breast sharply contrasts with a broad transverse red band. The iris is dark brownish. It is found in the north-eastern part of this species' range.

• Race culminatus: It resembles the nominate, but has a yellow base of the upper mandible and ridge to its bill, orange-yellow uppertail coverts and the throat and breast are white (occasionally tinged yellow), with just a narrow red band separating the latter from the black belly. It occurs in the eastern and south-central part of this species' range. It is very similar to, and easily confused with, Cuvier's Toucan (Ramphastos tucanus cuvieri).

• Race ariel: It resembles the nominate, but the base of its bill is yellow, the skin around the pale blue eye is red and the entire throat and chest are orange. It occurs in the south-east Amazon. The unnamed population from the coastal regions of eastern Brazil is virtually identical.

• Race citreolaemus. It resembles culminatus, but with a clear yellow tinge to the throat, a green tinge to the othewise yellow culmen, a yellow-orange patch at the very base of the bill, and a pale bluish iris. It occurs in northern Colombia and north-western Venezuela.

Wherever the distributions of the subspecies meet, individuals with features that are intermediate compared to above described races are common due to hybridization. Some of these intermediate populations have sometimes been awarded subspecies status, e.g. theresae for the population in north-eastern Brazil and pintoi for populations in south-central Brazil (both are culminatus-ariel intergrades).

Habitat

Found in forest and woodland. Prefers humid regions, but locally extends into drier regions (esp. along rivers). Mainly in lowlands, but locally to an altitude of 1700 m (5600 ft).

Behavior

This species is an arboreal fruit-eater, but will take insects and small reptiles, eggs and nestlings of other birds and frogs. The call is a croaking cree-op cree-op cree-op.

The parents are both active in raising the young. The white eggs are laid in a high unlined tree cavity. There is have a gestation period of 18 days, and the parents both incubate for 15 to 16 days. However, they can be impatient sitters, often leaving their eggs uncovered for hours at a time. Newborn toucans remain in the nest after hatching. They are blind and naked at birth, and their eyes open after about 3 weeks. They have short bills and specialized pads on their heels to protect them from the rough floor of the nest. The feathers do not begin to expand until they are nearly 4 weeks old. They are helpless and unable to leave the nest for about 8 weeks, dependent upon both parents to feed them. After this, the young can care for themselves. They begin to leave the nest after 40 to 50 days, depending on size.

Full Story >>