Emperor penguins are not considered endangered and are not currently protected under international or regional laws. In areas where reliable population counts have been conducted, the evidence suggests that populations are stable. However, some colonies have not been monitored consistently and human disturbance may result in declines in breeding populations. Estimates of population sizes (as of 1995) were 195,400 breeding pairs, or a total population size of 400,000 to 450,000.