Chinstrap Penguin Identification Guide

Key Field Marks

• Medium-sized penguin, about 27–30 inches tall, with a white face and throat and a solid black cap covering the crown and back of the head.
• The defining feature is a thin black line running under the chin, connecting the black cap on either side and giving the appearance of a strap holding on a helmet — hence the name.
• Black upperparts and white underparts typical of penguins, with pinkish-flesh legs and feet.
• Bill is black and relatively short and stout.
• Sexes look alike; juveniles have a duller, less crisp version of the adult pattern.

Separating It From Similar Species

• Adelie Penguin: has an all-black head with no white face at all, aside from a thin white eye-ring — lacks any white on the face or the chin strap.
• Gentoo Penguin: shows a white patch over and behind each eye that often meets over the crown, plus an orange-red bill — very different head pattern from Chinstrap's black cap and white face.
• No other penguin species shares the black chin-strap line, making Chinstrap Penguin one of the most easily identified of the "brush-tailed" penguins.

Habitat, Range & Season

• Breeds in large, dense colonies on rocky, ice-free slopes of the Antarctic Peninsula and nearby sub-Antarctic islands, including the South Sandwich, South Orkney, and South Shetland Islands.
• Forages in the Southern Ocean near pack ice edges, feeding mainly on krill.
• Breeding season runs roughly from November through February (austral summer); birds disperse north over open water outside the breeding season.

Voice

• Loud, harsh, braying or shrieking calls given at crowded, noisy breeding colonies, often accompanied by head-swinging displays.
• Colonies can be extremely loud and are often detectable by sound and smell before they are seen.