Difference between King and Emperor Penguin

Just like all of the other animals living on earth, penguins have got different species too. Some of them are very large in size whereas others don’t get noticed much because of this characteristic.

King and emperor penguins are two of the biggest of their species that live on earth and it is quite difficult to differentiate between the two, especially if you have not studied them thoroughly. Since they are almost similar in size, you will be unable to spot the one you are looking for.

However, there are some characteristics that differ in both the king and emperor penguins and if you are able to study them properly, you will be able to identify the right kind. Even if you are aware of their appearance, you will be able to spot some minor differences, which will help you get rid of the confusion.

If you go by the appearance, you will find very little disparity between the king and emperor penguin. Both are quite large and none other of their specie can match them in size and weight.

However, the latter of the two is the largest of all and weighs even more than the king emperor. Although you will be unable to judge their weight, yet you can see the size difference, if you monitor them closely. This difference can be difficult to sit through, as you would be unaware of the age of the penguins in front of you.

When you look at the chicks of these two species of penguins, you will be able to spot a clear difference in their colour. The emperor penguin’s chick is greyish in colour whereas the baby king penguin is brownish in colour. However, they develop the same colours when they grow up.

There is a slight colour difference between adult king and emperor penguin too. The former of the two has got dark orange or yellow spots around the neck area, which can help you spot easily. Compared to that, the emperor penguins have got paler colours around their throat.

Emperors only live in the Antarctic area as opposed to the kings, who are found in the sub-Antarctic areas too. So, you can easily tell the penguin’s kind, if you have the exact information of the area.