This penguin usually nests in forest or scrub, among native flax (Phormium tenax) and lupin (Lupinus arboreus), on slopes or gullies, or the shore itself, facing the sea. These areas are generally sited in small bays or on headland areas of larger bays.[7] It is found in New Zealand, on the south-east coast of the South Island most notably on Otago Peninsula, Foveaux Strait, Stewart Island, and sub-Antarctic islands of Auckland and Campbell Islands. It expanded its range from the sub-Antarctic islands to the main islands of New Zealand after the extinction of the Waitaha penguin several hundred years ago.
Conservation[edit]