# Adélie penguin (*Pygoscelis adeliae*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/adelie-penguin  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The adélie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae), also called the Adelie penguin, is a bird in the penguin family Spheniscidae, order Sphenisciformes. It is a medium-sized, marine, aquatic predator and carnivore, with a representative adult body mass of 4.8 kg and reported values from 4.72 to 5.35 kg. It lays 2 eggs per clutch and one clutch per year, the eggs are incubated for 34 days, and it reaches sexual maturity at 3.7 years. The adélie penguin is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, is partially migratory and has a geographic range of 148,200 km².

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 4.72 kg – 5.35 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 18 years |
| Diet | Aquatic predator |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | marine |
| Egg incubation | 34 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2 |
| Age at maturity | 3.74 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Lifestyle | Aquatic |
| Migration | Partial |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Sphenisciformes
- family: Spheniscidae
- genus: Pygoscelis
- species: *Pygoscelis adeliae* (Hombron & Jacquinot, 1841)

Synonyms: *Catarrhactes adeliae*

## Common questions

### How heavy is an adélie penguin?

An adult Adélie penguin has a representative body mass of 4.8 kg, with reported values from 4.72 to 5.35 kg.

### Is the adélie penguin endangered?

No. The adélie penguin is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does an adélie penguin live?

The adélie penguin has a lifespan of 18 years.

### How many eggs does the adélie penguin lay?

The adélie penguin lays 2 eggs per clutch and one clutch per year, and the eggs are incubated for 34 days.

### What kind of animal is the adélie penguin?

The adélie penguin is a bird in the penguin family Spheniscidae, order Sphenisciformes.

### Does the adélie penguin migrate?

Yes, the adélie penguin is partially migratory.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), CC BY 4.0, v7. Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Adélie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/adelie-penguin