Adelie penguins, slick and efficient swimmers, live on the Antarctic continent and on many small, surrounding coastal islands Almost six million Adelie penguins are living in East Antarctica, more than double the number previously thought, scientists said Wednesday in findings that have implications for conservation. 
 
 Research by an Australian, French and Japanese team used aerial and ground surveys, tagging and resighting data and automated camera images over several breeding seasons, which allowed them to come up with the new figure. 
 
 They focused on a 5,000 kilometre (3,100 mile) stretch of coastline, estimating it was home to 5.9 million birds—some 3.6 million more than previously thought. On this basis, they estimate a likely global population of 14 to 16 million. 
 
 Before, population estimates only took into account breeding pairs, said Australian Antarctic Division seabird ecologist Louise Emmerson. 
 
 "Non-breeding birds are harder to count because they are out foraging at sea, rather than nesting in colonies on land," she said. 
 
 "However, our study in East Antarctica has shown that non-breeding Adelie penguins may be as, or more, abundant than the breeders. 
 
 "These birds are an important reservoir of future breeders and estimating their numbers ensures we better understand the entire population's foraging needs." 
 
 Adelie penguins, slick and efficient swimmers, live on the Antarctic continent and on many small, surrounding coastal islands. They spend the winter offshore in the seas surrounding the pack ice. 
 
 Seabird ecologist Colin Southwell said the research had implications for conservation, with more birds potentially interacting with humans in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean than previously thought. 
 
 He said the rocky, ice-free areas preferred by penguins for nesting were also favoured by research stations due to ease of resupply. 
 
 "There are currently nine permanently occupied research stations in the ice-free areas of East Antarctica and we found over one million birds breed within 10 kilometres of a station," he said. 
 
 "By identifying significant penguin breeding populations near stations we can better identify which areas may need enhanced protection into the future." 
 
 The study also estimated the amount of krill and fish needed to support the Adelie penguin population, prey that is also sought after by seals and whales. 
 
 "An estimated 193,500 tonnes of krill and 18,800 tonnes of fish are eaten during the breeding season by Adelie penguins breeding in East Antarctica," Emmerson said. 
 
 This information will now be used by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources to set sustainable krill fishery catch limits. 
 
 Explore further: Adelie penguin numbers may expand as glaciers retreat ||||| Hey, we all make mistakes. The key is how you recover from them. 
 
 Antarctic scientists wildly underestimated the number of Adélie penguins in just one part of Antarctica by, oh, a paltry 3.6 million or so. But the good news is they're back on track now, and are well on the way to a better understanding of the birds. 
 
 Adélies were named after the wife of an 1840s French explorer. Unlike most other penguin species, they live only on the frozen continent and nearby small islands. But how many of them are there? 
 
 You squawkin' to me? 
 
 Well, scientists now believe there are 5.9 million penguins on a 5,000 km stretch of coastline in east Antarctica alone. Extrapolating from that, their best guess is 14 to 16 million birds in the whole of Antarctica. 
 
 Previous estimates had the east Antarctic population at closer to 2.3 million. So how did a team of French, Japanese and Australian scientists suddenly find an extra 3.6 million flipper flappers? 
 
 Australian Antarctic Division seabird ecologist Dr Louise Emmerson had the answer to that on Wednesday. 
 
 "The reason it's higher is we have incorporated the non-breeding component of the population," she said. 
 
 "The non-breeders are essentially an invisible component of the population. The breeders are very well behaved. They come to the islands and sit around on eggs and we can count them easily. But these non-breeders are foraging out in the water where we can't see them. They may visit from time to time but they are essentially invisible to us." 
 
 Have you got any regurgitated chips to go with that, mum? 
 
 Using a pretty nifty combination of aerial surveillance and a range of land-based counting methods, scientists were at last able to compile a comprehensive survey of these avian tiny tuxedoes. You might say that where these Adélies are concerned, at long last the scientists could have had it all. 
 
 The research also estimated the amount of food needed to support the Adélie penguin population. Adélies eat small fish, jellyfish and krill -- the tiny crustaceans which are a key element of the Antarctic food chain. 
 
 Anyone smell something a bit fishy? 
 
 "An estimated 193,500 tonnes of krill and 18,800 tonnes of fish are eaten during the breeding season by Adélie penguins breeding in East Antarctica," Dr Emmerson said. 
 
 The dietary information will be used by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources to set sustainable krill fishery catch limits. 
 
 But how did scientists survey what the penguins eat? 
 
 Ah, well a key element of collecting the data was examining penguin poo. So next time you think you're having a bad afternoon, remember that you could be standing around in minus 10 closely examining penguin faeces. 
 
 ALSO ON HUFFPOST AUSTRALIA
– In a rare bit of good news in the animal conservation world, scientists say they vastly lowballed the penguin population on Antarctica. The off-base estimate pertains to Adelie penguins—that's the adorable Happy Feet variety—and it turns out there are 3.6 million more of them than previously thought, reports the Huffington Post Australia. A team of Australian, Japanese, and French scientists now think there are 5.9 million of these birds occupying a 3,100-mile stretch of east Antarctica. From that projection, they pegged the total Adelie penguin population on the continent at 14 million to 16 million. The Adelies, named after the wife of the French explorer who discovered them in 1840, are only found on Antarctica and its islands. So why did their number take such a leap? "The reason it's higher is we have incorporated the non-breeding component of the population," says Aussie ecologist Dr. Louise Emmerson. What that means is that while the breeding birds migrate to the island to do the deed and then sit on eggs, making them easy to count, non-breeders are "off foraging out in the water where we can't see them," she says. It turns out the non-breeders were more numerous. How did the experts revise their count? They used aerial surveillance and land-based counting methods, and they studied penguin droppings to ballpark the amount of food the tuxedoed ones consume: an estimated 213,000 tons of krill and 21,000 tons of fish during the breeding season, per the AFP. The findings could help inform conservation efforts for marine and land animals, per the Australian. (What happened to 150K missing penguins?)