Expedition 🇦🇶 Antarctica
Emperor Penguin in Antarctica
Survivor of the polar night — the tallest penguin, breeding through Antarctica's cruellest winter on the ice.
The species
The emperor penguin is the only animal that breeds during the Antarctic winter, marching up to 120 kilometres across sea ice to colonies where males huddle together for two months, balancing a single egg on their feet at temperatures below minus 40°C.
Habitat in Antarctica
Emperor penguins breed on fast ice attached to the Antarctic continent, at roughly 40 known colonies around the coast. They spend their lives on and in the Southern Ocean, coming ashore only to moult and breed.
Where to spot one
Snow Hill Island
Antarctic Peninsula
An emperor penguin colony accessible by icebreaker and helicopter — one of the rarest wildlife encounters on Earth.
Ross Sea
East Antarctica
The largest marine protected area on Earth — emperor penguins, Adélie penguins, and orcas in pristine polar waters.
South Georgia Island
Sub-Antarctic
Not quite the continent, but the gateway expedition — king penguins in their hundreds of thousands on shingle beaches.
Weddell Sea
East Antarctica
Emperor penguin colonies on sea ice — accessed only by the hardiest expedition vessels.
Conservation status
Emperor penguins are Near Threatened, with colonies projected to decline as sea ice shrinks with climate change. Antarctica's remote colonies make monitoring difficult but satellite imagery is revealing population trends.
Keep exploring
Free on iOS
Log the Emperor Penguin in Antarctica
Spot one in the wild — scan it in Catch'Um to log your legendary discovery.