Galapagos penguin
Spheniscus mendiculus Sundevall, 1871
The galapagos penguin (Spheniscus mendiculus), also written Galápagos penguin, is a medium-sized bird in the penguin family Spheniscidae. It is a carnivorous aquatic predator of marine habitats, with a geographic range of 1,041 km², and it is partially migratory.
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Quick facts about the galapagos penguin
Adults weigh 1.9 kg, with reported values from 1.74 to 2.23 kg; it has one clutch per year of 3.25 eggs, incubated for 41 days. The IUCN Red List classifies the galapagos penguin as Endangered, a threatened category.
- Weight
- 1.74 kg – 2.23 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 20 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Aquatic predatorsrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- marinesrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 41 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 2 – 3.25src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 3.5 years – 5 yearssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1src for Litters or clutches a year
- Lifestyle
- Aquaticsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Partialsrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Endangered (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the galapagos penguin
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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Where does the galapagos penguin live?
Not recorded
What is the galapagos penguin?
The Galápagos penguin (Spheniscus mendiculus) is a penguin endemic to the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador. It is the only penguin found north of the equator. Most inhabit Fernandina Island and the west coast of Isabela Island. The cool waters of the Humboldt and Cromwell Currents allow it to survive despite the tropical latitude. The Galápagos penguin is one of the banded penguins, the other species of which live mostly on the coasts of Africa and mainland South America. Due to their warm environment, Galápagos penguins have developed techniques to stay cool. The feathers on their back, flippers, and head are black, and they have a white belly and a stripe looping from their eyes down to their neck and chin. Each penguin keeps only one mate, and breeds year-round. Because there are no soft areas to nest, their nests are typically in caves and crevices which also provide protection against predators and the harsh environment. The Galápagos penguin has a lifespan of 20 years, but due to predation, life expectancy in the wild could be significantly reduced. They have been critically impacted to the point of endangerment by climate change and pollution caused by plastic waste due to tourism and urbanization.
From the Wikipedia article “Galapagos penguin” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Galapagos_penguin&oldid=1383926848), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the galapagos penguin endangered?
The galapagos penguin is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List: it faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Endangered species. What the categories mean.
How is the galapagos penguin classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderSphenisciformes
- familySpheniscidae
- genusSpheniscus
- SpeciesSpheniscus mendiculus Sundevall, 1871
Synonyms Spheniscus flavipes, Spheniscus modestus
Other names and names in other languages (41)
- Galápagos penguinEnglish
- Galápagos penguinEnglish
- Galápagos penguinEnglish
- بطريق الغالاباغوسArabic
- Галапагоски пингвинBulgarian
- pingüí de les GalápagosCatalan
- tučňák galapážskýCzech
- pengwin y GalapagosWelsh
- GalápagospingvinDanish
- GalapagospinguinGerman
- Galapagos-PinguinGerman
- Galápagos-PinguinGerman
- GalápagospinguinGerman
- galapaga pingvenoEsperanto
- Pingüino de GalápagosSpanish
- Pájaro bobo de GalápagosSpanish
- Pingüino de las GalápagosSpanish
- galapagose pingviinEstonian
- galápagose pingviinEstonian
- galapagosinpingviiniFinnish
- galápagosinpingviiniFinnish
- Manchot des GalapagosFrench
- galápagosi pingvinHungarian
- Pinguino delle GalapagosItalian
- ガラパゴスペンギンJapanese
- Галапагос пингвиніKazakh
- galapaginis pingvinasLithuanian
- GalapagospinguïnDutch
- GalápagospinguïnDutch
- galapagospingvinNorwegian
- pingwin równikowyPolish
- Pinguim-de-GalápagosPortuguese
- pinguim-das-galápagosPortuguese
- Галапагоский пингвинRussian
- Галапагосский пингвинRussian
- tučniak galapágskySlovak
- Galapagoski pingvinSerbian
- Galapagos PengueniTurkish
- пінгвін галапагоськийUkrainian
- 加岛企鹅Chinese
- 加拉巴哥環企鵝Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List
Relatives of the galapagos penguin
Other species in the same genus Spheniscus.
African penguin
Spheniscus demersus
Humboldt penguin
Spheniscus humboldti
Magellanic penguin
Spheniscus magellanicus
CompareGalapagos penguin vs African penguinGalapagos penguin vs Humboldt penguinGalapagos penguin vs Magellanic penguinGalapagos penguin vs Spheniscus megaramphus
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
Is the galapagos penguin endangered?
Yes. The galapagos penguin is listed as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List, which is a threatened category.
How heavy is a galapagos penguin?
An adult Galapagos penguin weighs 1.9 kg, with reported values from 1.74 to 2.23 kg.
What does the galapagos penguin eat?
The galapagos penguin is a carnivore classed as an aquatic predator.
How long does a galapagos penguin live?
The lifespan of the galapagos penguin is given as 20 years.
How many eggs does a galapagos penguin lay?
The galapagos penguin has a clutch size of 3.25 eggs, with one clutch per year. The eggs are incubated for 41 days.
When does a galapagos penguin reach sexual maturity?
A galapagos penguin reaches sexual maturity at 4.2 years, with reported values from 3.5 to 5.0 years.
Who named the galapagos penguin?
The galapagos penguin, Spheniscus mendiculus, was named by Sundevall, 1871.
What kind of animal is the galapagos penguin?
The galapagos penguin is a bird in the penguin family Spheniscidae, order Sphenisciformes.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · 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 · 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 · 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 · 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 · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · 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).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Galapagos penguin (Spheniscus mendiculus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/galapagos-penguin
“Galapagos penguin (Spheniscus mendiculus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/galapagos-penguin.
@misc{galapagos_penguin_2026,
title = {Galapagos penguin (Spheniscus mendiculus)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/galapagos-penguin},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}