Antarctic emperor penguins on the brink of extinction due to climate change and disease

2026-04-18 10:39:00, Kuriozitete CNA

Antarctic emperor penguins on the brink of extinction due to climate change and

Emperor penguins, one of Antarctica's most iconic species, have been officially declared endangered, just 124 years after the first breeding colony on Ross Island was discovered by British explorer Robert Falcon Scott during his 1902 expedition.

This development is considered an alarming signal for the state of the environment in Antarctica, where climate change is accelerating profound transformations in the ecosystem. According to the latest data, the emperor penguin population has declined by about 10% between 2009 and 2018 and is expected to halve by 2073 if the current trend continues.

Experts say the main cause of this decline is the shrinking sea ice, which is vital to the penguins' life cycle. They use the ice as a platform for mating, incubating eggs and raising their young. When the ice melts prematurely, the young chicks fail to survive.

At the same time, changes in ocean temperatures are also affecting the food chain. Antarctic krill, the main food source for many species, is shifting south and to greater depths, becoming less accessible to predators like penguins and seals.

The situation is equally worrying for Antarctic fur seals, which have suffered a population decline of over 50% since the late 1990s. From around 2.1 million mature individuals in 1999, their numbers have fallen to around 944,000 today.

Moreover, a new threat is spreading in the region: avian influenza, a highly contagious virus that is causing high mortality in marine fauna. In some cases, more than 90% of elephant seal pups have died, while significant declines in adult numbers have also been reported.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature has included these species on its Red List, a global indicator of extinction risk. The rapid shift from “least concern” to “endangered” status for some species shows the alarming pace of deterioration in the situation.

However, scientists point out that the lack of complete data for many other species in Antarctica makes the situation even more unclear. Due to the harsh conditions and remoteness of the region, continuous monitoring remains a major challenge.

Experts are calling for urgent global action, including reducing greenhouse gas emissions, limiting the impact of industrial fishing and improving the protection of natural habitats.

According to them, without rapid and coordinated intervention, emperor penguins and many other Antarctic species could disappear forever, marking an irreversible loss to global biodiversity./ CNA