When on land, Galapagos penguins hold their flippers out to maximise heat loss and to shade their feet from getting sunburnt.

Statistics
Height: 50cm (19.6in), Weight 2.2kg (4.8lb).

Physical description
Galapagos penguins have a black/brown head and body with two arcs of white plumage around each eye. They have an inverted horseshoe shape on their chest. They have a longer and more slender bill than other penguins.

Distribution
Galapagos penguins live on the equator and are confined to the tropics of South America where they only breed on the Galapagos islands. They remain in these waters all year round.

Diet
They feed on small tropical fish . up to 150mm (6 inches) - including mullet and sardines, and crustaceans. They may feed co-operatively as a pair.

Behaviour
During the day they spend much time swimming and feeding in order to keep cool in the water.

Reproduction
Galapagos penguins breed in solitary pairs or small social groups in caves or caverns close to sea level. They will only breed when there is a plentiful food source. Each pair will normally lay two eggs but raise only one of the resultant chicks. Both parents tend the eggs for 38-40 days, the chick is cared for by the male and female and guarded for thirty days after hatching. By 60-65 days the chick will have moulted and will be independent.

Conservation status
Galapagos penguins are classed as Endangered by the 2000 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It is thought that there are less than 2000 breeding pairs now, following a recovery from bad declines blamed on the 1982/83 El Nino event.