Two African Penguins, Boulders Beach, South Africa Poster

"Two African Penguins, Boulders Beach, South Africa" by Catherine Sherman. Two African penguins stand on a rock at Boulders Beach on the Cape Peninsula of South Africa. The African Penguin (Spheniscus demersus), also known as the Black-footed Penguin, is found only in southern African waters. Roughly 4 million penguins existed at the beginning of the 19th century. Of the 1.5-million population of African penguins estimated in 1910, only some 10% remained at the end of the 20th century. African penguin populations, which breed in Namibia and South Africa, have declined by 95 percent since pre-industrial times. The total population fell to 200,000 in 2000. In 2010, the number was estimated to be only at 55,000. At this rate of decline, the African penguin is expected to be extinct in the wild by 2026.