• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Distribution map
• Reference and further resources

Taxonomic source(s)
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.
SACC. 2005 and updates. A classification of the bird species of South America. Available at: https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm.

Red List criteria met

Critically Endangered	Endangered	Vulnerable
-	-	A2bcde+3bcde+4bcde

Red List history

Year	Category	Criteria
2020	Vulnerable	A2bcde+3bcde+4bcde
2018	Vulnerable	A2bcde+3bcde+4bcde
2016	Vulnerable	A2bcde+3bcde+4bcde
2013	Vulnerable	A2bcde+3bcde+4bcde;C1+2b
2012	Vulnerable	A2bcde+3bcde+4bcde;C1+2b
2010	Vulnerable	A2b,c,d,e; A3b,c,d,e; A4b,c,d,e; C1; C2b
2008	Vulnerable	A2b,c,d,e; A3b,c,d,e; A4b,c,d,e; C1; C2b
2005	Vulnerable
2004	Vulnerable
2000	Vulnerable
1994	Lower Risk/Near Threatened
1988	Threatened

Migratory status	full migrant	Forest dependency	does not normally occur in forest
Land-mass type	continent	Average mass	-

	Estimate	Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident)	2,710,000 km2	medium
Extent of Occurrence (non-breeding)	2,230,000 km2	medium
Number of locations	20	-
Severely fragmented?	no	-

	Estimate	Data quality	Derivation	Year of estimate
Population size	23800 mature individuals	medium	estimated	2020
Population trend	decreasing	medium	inferred	1987-2024
Rate of change over the past 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	30-49%	-	-	-
Rate of change over the future 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	30-49%	-	-	-
Rate of change over the past & future 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	30-49%	-	-	-
Generation length	12.5 years	-	-	-
Number of subpopulations	2-100	-	-	-

Population justification: A census of the breeding population in Chile carried out in spring 2017, considering all known colonies, suggests that this country holds a population of 5,100 breeding pairs, equating to 10,200 mature individuals. A census of moulting birds, including mature and immature individuals, carried out in January 2017 in Peru, accounted for 13,600 individuals in this country (P. McGill pers. comm.). This roughly equates to a global population of 23,800 mature individuals, though this is considered a maximum value.

Trend justification: A current analysis of the population trend reveals high uncertainty in the quality of population numbers taken in the past three generations, with important deficiencies in the coverage of breeding sites and in the methodology employed to count penguins within and between Peru and Chile (Simeone and Cárdenas unpubl.). Most breeding colonies in Peru declined in numbers between 1980 and 2008 (Vianna et al. 2014). In contrast, some colonies in northern Chile showed a positive trend over the same time period; however, the significant population increase in the largest breeding colony at Chañaral Island was attributed to a considerable underestimation of penguin numbers in the past, and thus likely does not represent a real increase in numbers (Mattern et al. 2004, Vianna et al. 2014). Colonies in central Chile showed a stable or negative trend. As a consequence, interpreting the current trend of the global population is problematic and further research is needed. However, considering the lack of evidence for an overall stability or increase in numbers, the current population trend is precautionarily retained as declining.

Country/Territory	Presence	Origin	Resident	Breeding visitor	Non-breeding visitor	Passage migrant
Chile	extant	native		yes
Colombia	extant	vagrant			yes
Ecuador	extant	vagrant			yes
Peru	extant	native		yes
USA	extant	vagrant			yes

Country/Territory	IBA Name
Chile	Acantilados de Arica
Chile	Bahía de Coquimbo
Chile	Guaneras de Camaraca
Chile	Guaneras de Cutipa
Chile	Guaneras sur de Camarones
Chile	Isla Chañaral
Chile	Isla Grande de Atacama
Chile	Isla Pájaro Niño de Algarrobo
Chile	Isla Tilgo
Chile	Islote Pupuya
Chile	Islotes Pajaros
Chile	Monumento Natural Isla Cachagua
Chile	Monumento Natural Pingüineras de Puñihuil
Chile	Parque Nacional Hornopirén
Chile	Parque Nacional Pan de Azúcar
Chile	Parque Tumbes Talcahuano
Chile	Patranca Island
Chile	Punta Lengua de Vaca
Chile	Reserva Nacional Pingüino de Humboldt - Isla Choros, Damas y Punta de Choros
Peru	Isla Foca
Peru	Isla Lobos de Afuera
Peru	Isla Lobos de Tierra
Peru	Isla Pachacámac
Peru	Reserva Nacional de Paracas

Habitat (level 1)	Habitat (level 2)	Importance	Occurrence
Artificial/Aquatic & Marine	Artificial/Marine - Marine Anthropogenic Structures	marginal	resident
Desert	Cold	major	resident
Forest	Temperate	marginal	breeding
Marine Coastal/Supratidal	Marine Coastal/supratidal - Coastal Caves/Karst	marginal	resident
Marine Coastal/Supratidal	Sea Cliffs and Rocky Offshore Islands	major	resident
Marine Intertidal	Rocky Shoreline	suitable	breeding
Marine Intertidal	Sandy Shoreline and/or Beaches, Sand Bars, Spits, Etc	marginal	non-breeding
Marine Intertidal	Shingle and/or Pebble Shoreline and/or Beaches	major	non-breeding
Marine Intertidal	Tidepools	marginal	non-breeding
Marine Neritic	Estuaries	marginal	non-breeding
Marine Neritic	Pelagic	major	non-breeding
Marine Neritic	Pelagic	major	non-breeding
Marine Oceanic	Epipelagic (0-200m)	major	non-breeding
Altitude	0 - 80 m	Occasional altitudinal limits

Threat (level 1)	Threat (level 2)	Impact and Stresses
Biological resource use	Fishing & harvesting aquatic resources - Unintentional effects: (large scale) [harvest]	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Majority (50-90%)		Negligible declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Indirect ecosystem effects, Species mortality
Biological resource use	Fishing & harvesting aquatic resources - Unintentional effects: (subsistence/small scale) [harvest]	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Majority (50-90%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Medium Impact: 6
		Stresses Indirect ecosystem effects, Species mortality
Biological resource use	Hunting & trapping terrestrial animals - Intentional use (species is the target)	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Species mortality
Climate change & severe weather	Habitat shifting & alteration	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Majority (50-90%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Medium Impact: 6
		Stresses Indirect ecosystem effects, Ecosystem degradation, Reduced reproductive success
Climate change & severe weather	Storms & flooding	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Causing/Could cause fluctuations		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Reduced reproductive success, Species mortality
Energy production & mining	Mining & quarrying	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Species disturbance, Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Human intrusions & disturbance	Recreational activities	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Species disturbance
Invasive and other problematic species, genes & diseases	Invasive non-native/alien species/diseases - Felis catus	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Species mortality
Invasive and other problematic species, genes & diseases	Invasive non-native/alien species/diseases - Rattus rattus	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Reduced reproductive success
Invasive and other problematic species, genes & diseases	Problematic native species/diseases - Lycalopex culpaeus	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Species mortality
Pollution	Industrial & military effluents - Oil spills	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Reduced reproductive success, Species mortality

Purpose	Scale
Food - human	subsistence, national
Fuels	subsistence, national
Handicrafts, jewellery, etc.	subsistence, national
Pets/display animals, horticulture	national

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Humboldt Penguin Spheniscus humboldti. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/humboldt-penguin-spheniscus-humboldti on 22/12/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 22/12/2024.