Snares Penguin

​The Snares crested penguin has the most restricted breeding distribution of all the crested penguin species, being endemic to the 300 ha Snares Islands group. It is sometimes considered conspecific with the Fiordland crested penguin, however, the two species have never been found interbreeding. On the Snares Islands, penguins land at sites on the east coasts of the two main islands, to access >100 separate colonies up to almost a kilometre inland. Most colonies are under forest or among  shrubland, but a few are on exposed rocky sites. The birds on the Western Chain nest at lower density among boulders and mollymawk nests. About 30,000 pairs breed on North East and Broughton Islands, and a few hundred pairs on Toru and Rima Islets in the Western Chain. Colonies on the two main islands range in size from 3-1300 pairs.

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For more information on Snares penguin natural history visit the Global Penguin Society at      https://www.globalpenguinsociety.org/portfolio-species-11.html
 
 

For more information on Snares penguin conservation status visit the IUCN Red List page at https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22697782/132602343