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Fairy Penguin photographed at Sea World, Gold Coast, Australia.
Image by ozwildlife - Some rights reserved.
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Fairy Penguins photographed at Sea World, Gold Coast, Australia.
Image by ozwildlife - Some rights reserved.
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FAIRY PENGUIN FACTS |
Description
The Fairy Penguin is the smallest species of penguin and the only one to breed in Australia. To keep them warm and dry, their feathers are oily due to oil glands in the penguins tail. Fairy penguins come ashore in groups to their burrows after dark when most predators are not around, returning to the sea before sunrise.
Other Names
Little Penguin, Little Blue Penguin
Size
40cm , Weight: 0.9kg
Habitat
coastal, where they live in burrows on the shore
Food
fish, squid, krill and small crustaceans
Breeding
They breed in August to February and lay two eggs. Both parents incubate eggs and take it in turns to feed the chick once it has hatched. The chicks remain in the nest for five weeks, They reach breeding age after 2-3 years.
Range
southern shores of Australia and New Zealand
Credits:
Map is from Atlas of Living Australia website at https://biocache.ala.org.au licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Notes
You can see Fairy Penguins penguins in the wild at Phillip Island near Melbourne, Victoria. The "penguin parade" at Phillip Island when the penguins come on land at dark is a famous tourist attraction.
Classification
| Class: | Aves | | Order: | Sphenisciformes | | Family: | Spheniscidae | | Genus: | Eudyptula | | Species: | minor | | Common Name: | Fairy Penguin |
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