Climate change threatens emperor penguins

Emperor penguins could be on the verge of extinction by 2100, according to new scientific research.

The prediction, based on climate change models, shows numbers of the species dropping 95% over the next 90 years - meaning that there would only be around 600 breeding pairs left.

Declining sea ice will make the penguin’s arduous trek to mate increasingly difficult.

The females only lay one egg each season, and for the chick to survive both parents must make many journeys across the ice to the sea.

Ice cover also influences the number of krill - the species eaten by the fish that penguins depend on for survival.

Emperor penguins could survive by adapting their breeding habits to the changing climate, although the study’s authors believe this would be unlikely.

Lead researcher Stephanie Jenouvrier said: “They are long-lived organisms so they adapt slowly.

“This is a problem because the climate is changing very fast.”

In the 1970s, one climate fluctuation and sea ice reduction led to a population decline in emperor penguins of around 50%.