Penguins (family Spheniscidae) are flightless seabirds, supremely adapted for pursuit diving. Their closest relatives are the albatrosses and petrels. Their wings are reduced to small, rigid flippers, made for ‘flying’ underwater. Sexes are alike, but juveniles can be distinguished by their plumage.
Only the African penguin breeds in Africa, while all others are vagrant, often coming ashore to moult. Indeed, all penguins come ashore for 3 to 4 weeks to replace their feathers simultaneously, relying on stored resources during this moult fast.
