Magdalena Island - A Penguin Colony in the Straits of Magellan
Los Pingüinos Natural Monument is located about 20 miles Northeast of Punta Arenas Chile, in the middle of the Straits of Magellan. Magdalena Island is home to some 140,000 Magellanic Penguins, and is the largest penguin colony in Chilean Patagonia. The penguins are migrating birds that come to Patagonia every year from mid Sept. to mid April. They nest, raise their chicks on this island and then head north.
The island is also shared by thousands of sea gulls. There is an uneasy alliance between these birds and the penguins. When the penguins are nesting, the sea gulls will eat all the unprotected penguin eggs and even chicks. To counter this, the penguins take turns guarding their nests while the other is feeding.
