African penguin

Spheniscus demersus

The African penguin (Spheniscus demersus) is a bird found in South Africa and Namibia. Rocky shores and islands off the coasts of South Africa and Namibia. It eats fish. The IUCN Red List lists it as Critically Endangered.

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Scientific name	Spheniscus demersus
Region	Africa
Found in	South Africa and Namibia

🏡 Where the African penguin lives

Rocky shores and islands off the coasts of South Africa and Namibia.

🍽️ What it eats

🐟 Fish100%

A rough guide to its diet over a year. Source: EltonTraits (Wilman et al. 2014).

Conservation status

LCNTVUENCREWEX

Critically EndangeredAlmost gone from the wild.

💡 It is the only penguin that nests in Africa. It brays like a donkey!

Hear the African penguin

Recorded by Jorge de Leon Cardozo & Susan Hochgraf (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0), xeno-canto XC434500. Trimmed to a few seconds.

Questions about the African penguin

Where does the African penguin live?

The African penguin lives in South Africa and Namibia. Rocky shores and islands off the coasts of South Africa and Namibia.

What does the African penguin eat?

fish (about 100%). These are rough shares of its diet over a year, from the EltonTraits database.

Is the African penguin endangered?

Almost gone from the wild. Its IUCN Red List category is Critically Endangered.

More birds from Africa

Sources: IUCN Red List (via Wikidata), EltonTraits 1.0 (Wilman et al. 2014), GBIF sightings for countries, Wikipedia. Last updated 2026-10-19.