Species profile
Aptenodytes forsteri
Emperor penguin
NT · Near Threatened — Near Threatened — likely to become at risk soon
About this species
Emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) is part of the curated SpeciesWatch catalogue and is classified as Near Threatened. Emperor penguin fathers incubate the egg on their feet for over two months through the Antarctic winter, fasting while temperatures drop below −40 °C. Its recorded population direction is decreasing, so the category needs to be read alongside continuing losses of individuals or local populations.
Habitat, behaviour and ecological role
This profile associates the species with marine, polar. These labels summarise environments used during different stages of its life rather than drawing an exact range boundary. They are the deepest-diving birds, reaching over 500 m and holding their breath for more than 20 minutes in pursuit of fish and squid. Its anatomy and behaviour are responses to those environments, while movement can connect distant places requiring different forms of management.
Why this species is at risk
Thousands of males huddle together in rotating formations, sharing warmth so evenly that the huddle stays around 20 °C even in a blizzard. The catalogue records 3 principal pressures for this profile: Sea-ice loss, Climate change, Fisheries. They should not be treated as isolated causes. Habitat change, exploitation, pollution, disease and climate stress can reinforce one another, while the importance of each pressure varies between regions and through time.
Conservation outlook
Climate monitoring and protection of ecological refuges are needed because reducing other pressures improves the capacity to adapt. Actions need long-term monitoring and revision as evidence changes; a positive intervention in one place does not by itself represent recovery across the species.
Editorial review: 2026-08-21
Threat factors
Known occurrences
Dots are georeferenced occurrence records from OBIS (marine) and GBIF (global), not individual animals and not a complete range map. Up to 500 recent API results are cached; the profile renders at most 500 points.
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Listen to this species
Weddell Sea, 63km south of Snow HIll Island · 0:01 · https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Stories connected to this species
Editorial context connecting this profile to climate, habitat and human activity.