Macaroni Penguin
Eudyptes chrysolophus
Number Of Mature
Individuals (Regional)
650 000
Regional
Population Trend
Decreasing
2025
Regional Category
Vulnerable
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CONTENTSOverview
Names
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IOC English Name: |
Macaroni Penguin |
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SA & IOC Scientific Name: |
Eudyptes chrysolophus |
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BirdLife International Taxonomy (scientific name): |
Eudyptes chrysolophus |
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Order: |
SPHENISCIFORMES |
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Family: |
Spheniscidae |
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Species name author: |
von Brandt 1837 |
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Afrikaans: |
Langkuifpikkewyn |
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Sesotho (South Africa): |
Phenkwine ya motlwenyalelele |
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Sesotho (Lesotho): |
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Siswati: |
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Zulu: |
inguzemqhelophuzi |
Current Assessment Status
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2025 Regional Category [Criteria] |
VU [A2bce] |
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2024 Global Category [Criteria] |
VU [A2bce+3bce+4bce] (BirdLife International 2020) |
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Population size (Regional) |
c. 325 000 pairs |
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Population size (Global) |
c. 6 300 000 pairs (BirdLife International 2020) |
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Distribution size (EOO) (Regional) km2 |
<500 000 (breeding; foraging) |
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Distribution size (EOO) (Global) km2 |
18 700 000 (breeding/resident) |
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Distribution size (AOO) (Regional) km2 |
334 (breeding) |
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Generation time |
12.33 years (BirdLife International 20203) |
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Status change reason |
No Change |
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Migrant (in the region) |
Full Migrant |
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Regional endemic |
No |
Historic Listing Information
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2000 Regional Status |
NT [A1cde] |
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2015 Regional Status |
VU [A2bce] |
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Status change reason (if applicable) |
Genuine Change in Status |
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2015 Population size (Regional) |
279 000 – 290 000 pairs |
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2015 Global Status |
VU [A2bce+3bce+4bce] |
Reason for Inclusion
Reason for Inclusion in the Assessment
The species was listed as Near Threatened and Vulnerable in the 2000 and 2015 regional assessments, respectively (Dyer and Crawford 2015), and globally Vulnerable in 2020 (BirdLife International 2020).
Category Justification
Category Justification
In 2015, the population of the Macaroni Penguin Eudyptes chrysolophus breeding at the Prince Edward Islands (PEIs) was assessed as regionally Vulnerable, having satisfied Criterion A2bce with a decrease of 30%, the causes of which may not have ceased and were not fully understood. At Marion Island, where regular monitoring takes place, numbers breeding decreased by 28% over 27 years from an estimated 433 723 pairs in 1994/95 (Crawford et al. 2003) to 313 217 pairs 2021/22 (Department of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment, DFFE, unpubl data). This equates to a reduction of 38% in 3 generations, retaining the species’ Vulnerable status under criteria A2bce at the PEIs. Given the declines mirror those observed internationally, a rescue effect cannot be considered.
Population Justification
The global population was estimated at 6.3 million breeding pairs in at least 258 colonies at c. 55 breeding sites (Crossin et al. 2013), with key populations on Isles Crozet (2.2 million pairs), Kerguelen (1.8 million pairs), Heard Island (1 million pairs), South Georgia (1 million pairs) and Marion islands. In 2021/22, about 313 217 pairs bred at Marion Island (DFFE unpubl data). An estimated 12 000 pairs bred at Prince Edward Island in 2008/09 (Crawford et al. 2009). Therefore, the most recent estimate of the overall population at the PEIs is c. 325 000 pairs. Confidence in this estimate is high.
Trend Justification
The current global population estimate of 6.3 million breeding pairs (Crossin et al. 2013) represented a 30% reduction on the previous estimate of 9 million pairs (BirdLife et al. 2023).
At Marion Island, age when most birds first bred (A) was 4 years, and adult survival (ϕ a) was estimated as 0.892 p.a. (Crawford et al. 2003). Given G = A + (1 / (1 − ϕ a)) (Birdlife International 2000), then G = 13.26 years. BirdLife International (2023) used G = 12.33 years and 3G = 37 years. The BirdLife (2023) value was used to assess the conservation status of the regional population at the PEIs, which was based on the trend at Marion Island. There numbers breeding decreased by 28% (120 506 pairs) over 27 years from an estimated 433 723 pairs in 1994/95 (Crawford et al. 2003) to 313 217 pairs 2021/22 (DFFE, unpubl data). This equates to a reduction of 38% in 3G.
Biology & Ecology
Taxonomy
The Royal Penguin E. schlegeli, which is found in the southwest Pacific Ocean and breeds on Macquarie Island, was previously treated as a subspecies of the Macaroni Penguin, with plumage differences considered to represent polymorphism. The two taxa are similar, differing mainly in the amount of blue-black feathering on their cheeks and throat: whereas these feathers are dark in chrysolophus, they are white or pale grey in schlegeli, which also exhibits yellow-tinged feathers between the bill and eye. There are biometric differences between these two penguins (Marchant and Higgins 1990). Macaroni Penguins have paired and hybridised with Southern Rockhopper Penguins E. chrysocome at the Falkland Islands (White and Clausen 2002). The Macaroni Penguin is monotypic (del Hoyo et al. 1992).
Identification
71 cm; 5–6 kg. A fairly large penguin with filamentous yellow, crest-like plumes on forehead typical of Eudyptes. Sexes alike. Upperparts and throat blue-black. Underparts white. Flippers black dorsally, with thin white trailing edge; ventrally white, with black tip and black basal leading edge. Long feather plumes extend from forehead along sides of head to meet above eyes, forming broad, loose crest. Obvious gape distinctly pink, fleshy and angled. Bill larger in males; red-brown. Eyes dull red. Legs and feet pink. Juvenile similar except for greyer eyes, grey tones on chin and throat and lack of distinct crest feathers (Marchant and Higgins 1990).
Distribution
The Macaroni Penguin has a more southerly distribution than most other crested penguins, breeding between about latitudes 45°S and 65°S in the west Indian Ocean (on Heard, McDonald, Kerguelen, Crozet and Prince Edward groups of islands) and the South Atlantic Ocean (Bouvet, South Sandwich, South Georgia, South Orkney, South Shetland and Falkland groups of islands, and in small numbers at islands off the Antarctic Peninsula) (Poncet 1993). It also extends into the south-east Pacific along the coast of southern Chile. The largest colonies are north of 55°S (Marchant and Higgins 1990).
Macaroni Penguins breed around the coasts of Prince Edward and Marion islands, which have surface areas of about 45 km2 and 290 km2, respectively. The AOO of Macaroni Penguins at the PEIs will be <335 km2, the sum of these areas. During chick rearing, Macaroni Penguins at Marion Island may forage up to 406 km from the island (Whitehead 2017). Hence their Extent of Occurrence (EOO) during breeding was roughly calculated as < πr2 (where r = 406 km), so <500 000 km2. This figure does not exclude the areas not used by the birds. During breeding, Macaroni Penguins mainly forage in the area extending from the east to the south of Marion Island, and also west of Marion Island (Whitehead 2017). In their winter inter-breeding period, Macaroni Penguins mainly forage south of Marion Island (Thiebot et al. 2013).
Ecology
During October, Macaroni Penguins return to breed at Marion Island, in colonies which range from small numbers of birds to the two large colonies that each hold >100 000 pairs and formerly held >200 000 pairs (Crawford et al. 2003, 2009). Breeding areas usually have little or no vegetation due to heavy use by birds. Traditional paths are used to access colonies (Dyer and Crawford 2015). At Marion Island, males arrive for breeding several days earlier than females (Crawford et al. 2006). Both sexes undertake substantial fasts during courtship and breeding (Marchant and Higgins 1990). Pairs lay two eggs from late October to mid-November, but only the larger second eggs produce fledged chicks, which leave the island by the end of February (Crawford et al. 2003). Incubation takes 34–39 days (Williams 1981). After breeding, Macaroni Penguins go to sea to fatten for about a month before returning to islands to moult, when they remain ashore for 20–30 days to replace all their feathers (Williams 1981). They then depart to over-wintering grounds to regain condition. At Marion Island, Macaroni Penguins fed mainly on crustaceans (euphausiids and amphipods), fish (mostly myctophids) and cephalopods (Brown and Klages 1987) with composition of prey changing as chicks develop. The median trip duration of adults provisioning chicks was 22.8 hours and most dives were <10 m (Pichegru et al. 2011).
Threats & Conservation
Threats
Inadequate breeding success has been a factor in the decrease of Macaroni Penguins at Marion Island (Crawford et al. 2003). Overwintering conditions are thought to influence the proportions of Macaroni Penguins skipping breeding, and therefore population-level breeding success; feeding conditions during breeding also may influence breeding success (Crawford et al. 2006). Global climate change may have altered the availability of prey to Macaroni Penguins (Crawford et al. 2003). In winter, Macaroni Penguins from Marion Island sometimes approached the edge of the sea-ice (Thiebot et al. 2013). No fisheries currently target the main prey of Macaroni Penguins at the PEIs, but should one be initiated it could potentially decrease prey availability (BirdLife International 2014). Longline fisheries at winter feeding grounds have inflicted limited incidental mortality on Macaroni Penguins (Dyer and Crawford 2015).
Recoveries of numbers of fur seals Arctocephalus spp. at the PEIs (Hofmeyr et al. 2006, Bester et al. 2009) could increase competition for prey and lead to increased predation of Macaroni and other penguins by seals. Increasing seal herds could also block access to penguin breeding sites, thereby inhibiting colony growth, as happened at Bouvet Island (Isaksen et al. 1997). Giant petrels Macronectes spp., Subantarctic Skuas Stercorarius antarcticus and Lesser Sheathbills Chionis minor also inflict mortality (Dyer and Crawford 2015).
Macaroni Penguins are susceptible to outbreaks of disease, including avian cholera Pasteurella multocida; disease outbreaks killed substantial numbers of Macaroni Penguins at Marion Island in 1992, 1993 and 2004 (Cooper et al. 2009). Oil spills around breeding colonies could be catastrophic.
Conservation Measures Underway
Macaroni Penguins breeding at the PEIs are indirectly protected, along with all other seabirds on the islands, by a number of regulations. For example, at Marion Island, there are strict guidelines in place for offloading diesel. Poultry products supplied to the over-wintering teams at Marion Island, or used during relief voyages to the island, do not contain bones and are irradiated in order to reduce the risk of introducing avian diseases. A contingency plan is in place to guide responses to outbreaks of disease at the PEIs. No access is allowed to Prince Edward Island itself, except for bona fide research and conservation purposes. The PEIs are listed as a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance, and as a Special Nature Reserve under the Environment Conservation Act (No 73 of 1989), a status that was maintained under the National Environmental Management Protected Areas Act of 2003 (Crossin et al. 2013). They are managed under the Prince Edward Islands Management Plan 1996. The Prince Edward Islands Marine Protected Area was proclaimed in 2013.
Conservation Measures Proposed
Monitoring of population numbers and demographic, diet and condition parameters at Marion Island should be continued. A population census at Prince Edward Island should be undertaken at intervals of about five years. Best-practice guidelines for reducing risk of disease outbreaks at islands are being developed by the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels. Once available, these guidelines should replace those presently operating at the PEIs. Overwintering teams should be given basic training in the rescue and rehabilitation of oiled penguins. The impact of any proposed fishery on the prey of Macaroni Penguins should be carefully assessed before such a fishery is allowed. Consideration should be given to declaring marine protected areas at important feeding grounds of Macaroni Penguins.
Research Priorities and Questions
- Despite the difficulty thereof, it is important to determine how food availability for Macaroni Penguins fluctuates at both summer and winter feeding-grounds, and to what extent the penguins compete with other predators for prey.
- More information is required on the foraging distributions, especially during breeding.
- Further research into adult and immature survival and recruitment ages of Macaroni Penguins at Marion Island would be beneficial.
- Implantation and scanning of transponder tags may assist in determining both population and demographic parameters.
- An updated count of Macaroni Penguins at Prince Edward Island is required.
Contributors & References
Assessor/s
Azwianewi Makhado, Robert Crawford
Reviewer/s
Pierre Pistorius
References
Bester MN, Ryan PG, Visagie J. 2009. Summer survey of fur seals at Prince Edward Island, southern Indian Ocean. African Journal of Marine Science 36: 451–455.
BirdLife International. 2000. Threatened birds of the world. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions.
BirdLife International. 2014. Macaroni Penguin Eudyptes chrysolophus. [Accessed on 13 August 2014].
BirdLife International. 2020. Aptenodytes patagonicus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T22697748A184637776. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22697748A184637776.en. [Accessed on 17 January 2025].
BirdLife International. 2023. Species factsheet: Eudyptes chrysolophus. [Accessed on 31 March 2023].
Brown CR, Klages NTW. 1987. Seasonal and annual variation in the diets of macaroni (Eudyptes chrysolophus chrysolophus) and southern rockhopper (E. chrysocome chrysocome) penguins at sub-Antarctic Marion Island. Journal of Zoology, London 212: 7–28.
Crawford RJM, Cooper J, Dyer BM. 2003. Population of the Macaroni Penguin Eudyptes chrysolophus at Marion Island, 1994/95–2002/03, with observations on breeding and diet. African Journal of Marine Science 25: 475–486.
Cooper J, Crawford RJM, de Villiers MS, Dyer BM, Hofmeyr GJG, Jonker A. 2009. Disease outbreaks among penguins at sub-Antarctic Marion Island: a conservation concern. Marine Ornithology 37: 193–196.
Crawford RJM, Dyer BM, Cooper J, Underhill LG. 2006. Breeding numbers and success of Eudyptes penguins at Marion Island, and the influence of mass and time of arrival of adults. CCAMLR Science 13: 175–190.
Crawford RJM, Whittington PA, Upfold L, Ryan PG, Petersen SL, Dyer BM, Cooper J. 2009. Recent trends in four species of penguin at the Prince Edward Islands. African Journal of Marine Science 31: 419–426.
Crossin GT, Trathan PN, Crawford RJM. 2013. Macaroni Penguin (Eudyptes chrysolophus) and Royal Penguin (Eudyptes schlegeli). In: Garcia Borboroglu P, Boersma PD (eds), Penguins: natural history and conservation. Seattle and London: University of Washington Press. pp 185–208.
del Hoyo J, Elliott A, Sargatal J. 1992. Handbook of the Birds of the World, Vol. 1. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions.
Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE). 2024. Media statement Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment on High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza suspected on sub-Antarctic Marion Island. https://www.gov.za/news/media-statements/forestry-fisheries-and-environment-high-pathogenicity-avian-influenza [Accessed on 11 May 2024].
Dyer BM, Crawford RJM. 2015. Macaroni Penguin Eudyptes chrysolophus. In: Taylor MR, Wanless RM, Peacock F (eds), The Eskom Red Data Book of Birds of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. Johannesburg: BirdLife South Africa. pp 248–250.
Hofmeyr GJG, Bester MN, Makhado AB, Pistorius PA. 2006. Population changes in Subantarctic and Antarctic fur seals at Marion Island. South African Journal of Wildlife Research 36: 55–68.
Isaksen K, Hofmeyr GJG, Dyer BM, Naestvold A, Mehlum F, Gjertz I, Bakken V, Huyser O (eds). 1997. Preliminary results from CEMP-monitoring of Antarctic Fur Seals, Chinstrap Penguins and Macaroni Penguins at Bouvetoya 1996/97. CCAMLR WG-EMM.
Marchant S, Higgins PJ (co-ordinators). 1990. Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds, Vol. 1: Ratites to ducks. Melbourne: Oxford University Press.
Pichegru L, Ropert-Coudert Y, Kato A, Takahshi A, Dyer BM. 2011. Diving patterns of female macaroni penguins breeding at Marion Island, South Africa. Polar Biology 34: 945–954.
Poncet S. 1993. The distribution and abundance of Antarctic and Subantarctic penguins. Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR).
Thiebot J-B, Cherel Y, Crawford RJM, Makhado AB, Trathan PN, et al. 2013. A space oddity: geographic and specific modulation of migration in Eudyptes penguins. PLoS ONE 8(8): e71429.
White RW, Clausen AP. 2002. Rockhopper Eudyptes chrysocome × Macaroni E. chrysolophus penguin hybrids apparently breeding in the Falkland Islands. Marine Ornithology 30: 40–42.
Whitehead TO. 2017. Comparative foraging ecology of macaroni and rockhopper penguins at the Prince Edward Islands. PhD thesis. University of Cape Town.
Williams AJ. 1981. The laying interval and incubation period of rockhopper and macaroni penguins. Ostrich 52: 226–229.
Citation
Makhado AB, Crawford RJM 2025. Macaroni Penguin. In: Lee ATK, Rose S, Banda S, Bezeng SB, Maphalala MI, Maphisa DH, Smit-Robinson H (eds), The 2025 Red Data Book of Birds of South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini. Johannesburg, South Africa: BirdLife South Africa. Available at: https://www.birdlife.org.za/red-list/macaroni-penguin/
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