Biologists describe new penguin species Pygoscelis kerguelensis on Kerguelen Islands

September 30, 2026 at 02:44 PM2 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

An international team led by Chilean biologists and the University of California, Berkeley described a new penguin species, Pygoscelis kerguelensis, on the Kerguelen Islands. The species was previously known only through genetic analyses and had not been recognized as distinct. No new penguin species had been described since 1921.

Key Facts

The new species Pygoscelis kerguelensis lives on the Kerguelen Islands and likely on nearby Heard Island in the southern Indian Ocean.
The reference specimen is an adult male collected on Kerguelen on December 31, 1897, and held at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
Genetic analyses show gentoo penguins form four distinct species: three former subspecies elevated to species rank and one new species.
Pygoscelis kerguelensis is smaller than the Falkland Islands penguin and larger than the Antarctic one, but visually resembles any gentoo penguin with black back and white belly.

Discovery and Classification

The study was published on April 23 in the journal Communications Biology and was spotted by Discover Wildlife. An international team led by Chilean biologists and the University of California, Berkeley sequenced the complete genome of 64 gentoo penguins from 10 colonies. The team officially described the new species Pygoscelis kerguelensis. No new penguin species had been described since 1921, when the Moseley's penguin (Eudyptes moseleyi) was named.

Geographic Distribution

Pygoscelis kerguelensis lives on the Kerguelen Islands and probably on nearby Heard Island, about 3,200 kilometers from any permanently inhabited land. To the east, Pygoscelis taeniata nests on the Crozet, Marion, and Macquarie Islands, the latter belonging to Australia. To the north, Pygoscelis papua, which retains the historical name, is confined to the Falkland Islands and Martillo Island in South America. To the south, Pygoscelis ellsworthi, the most numerous, lives on the Antarctic Peninsula, the coasts of the continent, and South Georgia Island.

Genetic and Physical Traits

Pygoscelis kerguelensis is distinguished by its genes and somewhat by its size and call. It is smaller than the Falkland Islands penguin and larger than the Antarctic one. To the eye, it resembles any gentoo penguin: black back, white belly. Biologists refer to it as a 'cryptic' species.