This is a list of Sphenisciformes species by global population. While numbers are estimates, they have been made by experts in their fields.
Sphenisciformes (from the Latin for "wedge-shaped") is the taxonomic order to which penguins belong. The IOC World Bird List recognizes 19 species of Sphenisciformes. BirdLife International has assessed 18 species (95% of total species), all of which have had their population estimated. This list follows IUCN classifications for species names and taxonomy. Where IUCN classifications differ from other ornithological authorities, alternative names and taxonomies are noted.
A variety of methods are used for counting penguins, including the first census from space in April 2012, when imagery from Ikonos, QuickBird-2, and WorldView-2 satellites were used to count emperor penguins in Antarctica. Most maritime surveys use strip transect and distance sampling to measure penguin species density; this is then extrapolated over the animal's range. The Galapagos penguin has been counted annually since 1961 by the Galápagos National Park Service. For more information on how these estimates were ascertained, see Wikipedia's articles on population biology and population ecology.
Extinct species from this order include the Waitaha penguin, which went extinct between 1300–1500 (soon after the Polynesian arrival to New Zealand), and the Chatham penguin, which is only known through subfossils; however, an extant individual may have been kept in captivity by researchers sometime between 1867 and 1872.
Species by global population Common nameBinomial namePopulationStatusTrendNotesImage Galapagos penguin Spheniscus mendiculus 1,200 Yellow-eyed penguin Megadyptes antipodes 2,600-3,000 Fiordland penguin Eudyptes pachyrhynchus 12,500-50,000 African penguin Spheniscus demersus 19,800 Number of total adult birds is estimated to be 31,680. Humboldt penguin Spheniscus humboldti 23,800 Values is considered the maximum estimate for breeding population. Snares penguin Eudyptes robustus 63,000 Erect-crested penguin Eudyptes sclateri 150,000 Population breeds in two locations: the Bounty Islands (26,000 pairs), & the Antipodes Islands (34,226 pairs). Northern rockhopper penguin Eudyptes moseleyi 413,700 Little penguinEudyptula minor469,760 Emperor penguin Aptenodytes forsteri 513,000 Estimate based on an approximate 256,500 breeding pairs counted from satellite images. Gentoo penguin Pygoscelis papua 774,000 Royal penguin Eudyptes schlegeli 1,340,000-1,660,000 ? Best estimate for mature individuals is 1.5 million individuals. King penguinAptenodytes patagonicus2,168,640-2,456,640Values are an estimate for mature individuals; IUCN reports an estimated "1.1 million annual breeding pairs (range 1,084,320-1,228,320)." Magellanic penguin Spheniscus magellanicus 2,200,000-3,200,000 Southern rockhopper penguin (Western rockhopper penguin)Eudyptes chrysocome 2,500,000 IOC taxonomic guidance splits Eastern rockhopper penguin into its own species from this species. IUCN/BirdLife International currently retain both species within E. chrysocome. Chinstrap penguin Pygoscelis antarcticus 8,000,000 Adélie penguin Pygoscelis adeliae 10,000,000 Macaroni penguin Eudyptes chrysolophus 12,600,000 Population is estimated at 6.3 million breeding pairs; main population centres at Isles Crozet (2.2 million pairs, with 1 million on Île des Pingouins), Heard Island (1 million pairs), Kerguelen (1.8 million pairs), & South Georgia (1 million pairs).
See also
Lists of birds by population Lists of organisms by population
References