what do penguins eat

Penguins are carnivores and their diet consists mainly of fish, squid, and krill. The exact foods that different penguin species eat depend on their range, bill size and shape, foraging behavior, and other factors. Smaller penguins may eat large quantities of krill, while larger species, including Emperor and King penguins, mainly eat fishes and squids. Some species of penguins eat up to 25 species of fish, such as sardine and anchovy, but also prey on squid and krill. Penguins swallow their food whole and don’t taste much of it at all. The males of some species can go as long as 120 days without food during breeding season, while they are mating and then nesting on their eggs. The biggest threat to penguins is humans, from loss of habitat from climate change and from loss of diet caused by overfishing and pollution.