Variation in Facial Colour of the Royal Penguin

Abstract

Colour of the throat, face and superciliary region below the crest in the Royal Penguin Eudyptes chrysolophus schlegeli was studied at eleven colonies on Macquarie Island. Facial colour varied continuously from white to black. To permit quantitative comparisons, facial colours were divided into three classes: White, Intermediate and Dark.

Facial colour was independent of age. There was a higher frequency of dark-faced females than males at each colonv. The distribution of classes of facial colour in different colonies was heterogeneous. with White common in colonies on the eastern and Dark common in colonies on the westerh coast. The overlap of facial colours of Royal and Macaroni E. c. chrysolophus Penguins is stressed and the prob- lems of distinguishing between the two taxa and of identifying stray E. chrysolophus are discussed.