In 1620, Admiral Beaulieu considered penguins to be feathered fish, due to their adaptations to life underwater.

Statistics
Height: 72cm, Weight: 3-5kg.

Physical description
Chinstrap penguins have a white front and throat, red eyes and a black back. They have a distinctive black band that runs from one side of the head under the bill to the other side of the head, resembling a chin strap. Their coat of feathers is dense for insulation and water proofing, and they have a thick layer of blubber as an energy store. The chicks have grey backs and white fronts.

Distribution
Chinstrap penguins are found around the Antarctic Peninsula and are mainly seen on the South Sandwich Islands with more than three quarters of the world population breeding there.

Diet
They feed on small shoaling fish and krill. Their main predator is the leopard seal, the eggs and chicks are preyed upon by sheathbills and brown skuas.

Behaviour
These penguins communicate through ritual behaviours of head and flipper waving, calling, bowing, gesturing and preening. Stares, pointing and charging may occur when territorial disputes arise. They live and breed in large colonies. One colony on the South Sandwich Island is said to contain 10 million birds.

Reproduction
Chinstrap penguins build nests using stones. The nests are usually 40cm diameter and 15cm high. During courtship the male pumps his chest and stretches his head upwards. He emits loud screeching sounds, which the others join in - it is thought that this helps to synchronise the breeding cycle.

They lay two eggs that are incubated by both parents in 5-10 day shifts. After five to six weeks the chicks hatch but remain in the nest for a further 20-30 days before they join the crhche (where young penguins huddle together for warmth). At seven weeks old and after moulting the chicks go to sea.

Conservation status
Chinstrap penguins are not classified as endangered by the 2000 IUCN Red List. In the past, commercial egg collecting has caused damage to rookeries, but they have no legal protection. There are thought to be up to 7.5 million breeding pairs.