Birds
Yellow-eyed Penguin
Megadyptes antipodes · also called hoiho
Hiding its nest alone within coastal forest rather than joining a crowded colony, a yellow-eyed penguin ranks among the rarest penguin species alive, its pale yellow eye-band and loud call giving rise to its Maori name, hoiho, meaning noise shouter.
Overview
The yellow-eyed penguin, Megadyptes antipodes, is an Endangered seabird native to coastal and ocean habitat around southern New Zealand and nearby sub-Antarctic islands. Its distinctive pale yellow eye markings, unusually solitary nesting behaviour, and status as one of the rarest penguin species alive make it one of the more conservation-critical seabirds found anywhere in the Southern Hemisphere.
A penguin that prefers privacy
While most penguins thrive in the safety of numbers within crowded breeding colonies, the yellow-eyed penguin has taken the opposite approach entirely, hiding its nest alone in coastal forest, a strategy that leaves individual pairs more exposed to disturbance but reflects a genuinely different survival strategy within the penguin family.
Status
Endangered, with populations declining significantly in recent decades due to habitat loss, introduced predators, disease, and changing ocean conditions.
Yellow-eyed Penguin: common questions
Why is it called the yellow-eyed penguin?
This species has a distinctive pale yellow band of feathers running around each eye and across the back of the head, a feature that gives the species its common name and sets it apart from most other penguins.
Does the yellow-eyed penguin nest in colonies like most penguins?
No, this species typically nests as isolated pairs hidden within coastal forest or scrub, unlike most other penguin species, which breed in large, dense, open colonies visible from a distance.
What is the yellow-eyed penguin's Maori name?
This species is also widely known by its Maori name, hoiho, meaning noise shouter, a reference to the loud call the species uses to communicate.
Why is the yellow-eyed penguin considered Endangered?
Populations have declined significantly in recent decades, driven by a combination of habitat loss, introduced predators, disease, and changing ocean conditions across its limited southern New Zealand range.