Penguin Watch Talk

King Penguins - how long from hatch to adulthood?

  • WiredSimon by WiredSimon

    From your illustration of the chicks of the King penguins, the rust colored puffy birds shown here, that still have brown beaks are indeed chicks, right, and not just molting adults? What confuses me about this photo is the date - how long does it take to get to adult size and have an orange beak like the adults?

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  • yshish by yshish moderator, translator in response to WiredSimon's comment.

    Hi @WiredSimon

    As for the King chicks, it takes them about 13 months to grow and fledge. I think it can even depends on the time the egg was laid since their breeding cycle is a bit longer than at other species and they can lay one egg on the winter and another one in summer.. like 6 months later.. so it has some affect on the chick when it grows up. Anyway, I'm not sure whether I understand that well enough to explain. Would be better to wait for an answer of a scientist:]

    Thanks for your question! Enjoy the counting:)

    Zuzi

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