The world’s largest colony of king penguins has decreased by nearly 90 percent since the 1980s, research shows, as reported by BBC.
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Aerial and satellite images show that the number of penguin pairs has fallen by 88 percent in the last three decades, according to a paper published in the journal Antarctic Science.
The colony resides on the uninhabited French island Ile aux Cochons between Africa and Antarctica in the Indian Ocean.
Researchers say there is no clear reason for the decline in their population.
The paper states that according to photographs taken in 2015 and 2017, only 60,000 pairs remain, compared to half a million recorded in previous surveys during the 1980s.
Second in size after emperor penguins, king penguins breed in a milder climate on islands north of the Antarctic coast.
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Research published in February indicates that some bird populations may be threatened by climate change.
