Other penguin species
Most of the 18 species of penguin are found in the southern hemisphere (except for one that lives at the equator), which is why penguins will never come face to face with a polar bear!
When most people think of penguins, they think of ice. Whilst this is home for some penguins, others live in the forest, caves, or even the desert (yes really!). Because it is so hot, birds in the desert or near to the equator have to dig burrows underground to keep cool!
Thirteen of the penguin species have been recorded in New Zealand region (including the Ross dependency in Antarctica). Three of these – the yellow-eyed, little and Fiordland crested penguins – breed on the mainland. Unsurprisingly, the little penguin is the smallest of all of the penguins (only 33cm tall); it is also the most common and can be found right around New Zealand. The Fiordland crested penguin (or tawaki) is found in Fiordland, Stewart Island, and on the south-west coast of the South Island.
Fiordland crested Eudyptes pachyrhynchus Tawaki
Little* Eudyptula minor Korora
Yellow-eyed Megadyptes antipodes hoiho
Adélie Pygoscelis adeliae
Chinstrap Pygoscelis antarctica
Emperor Aptenodytes forsteri
Erect-crested Eudyptes sclateri
Gentoo Pygoscelis papua
King Aptenodytes patagonica
Macaroni Eudyptes chrysolophus
Southern rockhopper Eudyptes chrysocome
Royal Eudyptes schlegeli
Snares crested Eudyptes robustus
African Spheniscus demersus
Galapagos Spheniscus mediculus
Humboldt Spheniscus humboldti
Magellanic Spheniscus magellanicus
Northern rockhopper Eudyptes moseleyi
*white-flippered penguins are considered a sub-species of the little penguin.
