Commonest penguin

The world's most abundant penguin species is the macaroni penguin (Eudyptes chrysolophus) a crested penguin predominantly found on subantarctic islands and the Antarctic Peninsula. Despite a notable decline in populations since the 1970s, there are still approximately 6.3 million breeding pairs in existence, but because of its decline it is currently categorized by the IUCN as Vulnerable.

This total does not include the total number of breeding pairs recorded for the royal penguin (E. schlegelii)– a very similar species native to islands south of Tasmania, Australia, and several subantarctic islands that some researchers believe to be conspecific with the macaroni penguin, and which will hybridise with it in the wild.