Southern Rockhopper Penguin paradise. Falkland Islands

The Southern rockhopper penguin is the smallest Falkland penguin. It is charismatic and popular with tourists and wildlife visitors. Rockhoppers are very agile - named from their habit of hopping up steep cliffs with both feet together. One of two crested penguins found in the Islands (the other is the Macaroni penguin), they can be identified by straight thin yellow eyebrows with yellow plumes above their red eyes.
Height: 48 cm, Length: 56 cm
Weight: 3.5 - 4 kg Males weigh heavier than females
Life expectancy: 10-15 years in the wild
Breeding age: 4 years
Migratory: Migrate from the Falklands between April and September
Predators: Sea Lions are the main predators at sea. At the colony skuas and striated caracaras take eggs and small chicks.
The Falkland Islands hold a significant proportion of the world population (320,000 pairs or 36% of the global population in 2010). Historically, the Falkland population has undergone serious declines from the 1930’s. In 1986 numbers crashed due to a mass starvation event and in 2002/03 the population was affected by a harmful algae bloom, which killed many adults. Numbers dropped between 2000 and 2005 by 88,000 pairs which was considered to be a reflection of the harmful algal event. The last Island Wide Census in 2010 indicated that the breeding population between 2005 and 2010 showed signs of recovery, but then followed a second starvation event during the moulting period in 2015. The Falkland population is unlikely to ever recover to the pre-1930 levels, when it was estimated at least 1 million Southern rockhopper penguins populated the Falklands.
Rockhoppers breed at 35 colonies in the Falklands, but 70% of the birds are at three major sites - Steeple Jason, Beauchene Island and Grand Jason.

[@petr-podrouzek]

Fantastic, Marek 🙂

[@MarekJackowskiPhotographer]

Thank you :)

[@chrishardman586]

Well done. I feel like I was there too.

[@MarekJackowskiPhotographer]

Thank You. I am gład you enjoyed :)