On Thinning Ice: Emperor Penguins Face Breeding Meltdown in Antarctica

In spring 2022, a drastic breeding failure was observed in four out of five emperor penguin colonies in the Bellingshausen Sea, Antarctica. This alarming phenomenon, a first in the past 13 years for the region, is attributed to the significant sea ice loss due to climate change. The survival of chicks is heavily influenced by stable sea ice, necessary for their breeding and molting.

Due to unprecedented sea ice loss from climate change, four out of five emperor penguin colonies in Antarctica faced significant breeding failure in 2022. Four out of five emperor penguin colonies in the Bellingshausen Sea, Antarctica, saw no chicks survive to fledge successfully in the spring of 2022, reports a study published today in the journal. The study suggests that this complete breeding failure is a direct consequence of the unprecedented loss of sea ice recorded in the region in recent years due to climate change.

This marks the region’s first regional breeding failure observed for emperor penguins in the past 13 years. It also stands as some of the initial evidence highlighting the direct repercussions of Antarctic warming on emperor penguin population viability. “Record low 2022 Antarctic sea ice led to catastrophic breeding failure of emperor penguins” by Peter T. Fretwell, Aude Boutet and Norman Ratcliffe, 24 August 2023,

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Loss of Antarctic sea ice causes catastrophic breeding failure for emperor penguinsEmperor penguin colonies experienced unprecedented breeding failure in a region of Antarctica where there was total sea ice loss in 2022. The discovery supports predictions that over 90% of emperor penguin colonies will be quasi-extinct by the end of the century, based on current global warming trends.
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