The little penguin is the smallest of the 17 penguin species. They have slate-blue to black feathers and a white chin and chest. Fairy penguins have bluish-gray eyes. The maximum swimming speed for fairy penguins is about 2.5 kph (1.6 mph). Fairy penguins can breed throughout the year and have the shortest breeding cycle of all penguin species, which lasts about 50 days. Fairy penguins rely on burrows and a nocturnal lifestyle to avoid predators such as swamp harriers, peregrines, gulls, snakes, rats, and lizards.
