I lO 
BROOKLYN INSTITUTE MUvSEUM. SCIENCE BULLETIN 2. 5- 
growth of black feathers. The new feathers of the ii])])er lireast reveal 
a pale yellowish tinge. The auricular j)atches are yellow, shghti}' 
brighter than the brea.st, but with no suggestion of the brilliant orange 
hue of the mature plumage. The characteristic, subtle, greenish- 
>'ellow glo.ss or “bloom,” however, makes its apjiearance on the crown 
of the head soon after the down has entirely disajipeared. The young 
king ])enguin is then a le.ss glorified replica of its ])arents, wdth a weaker, 
wholly blackish bilk* 
We ob.served molting adult king ]:)enguins throughout our stay at 
vSoiith Georgia, so that the .season of this function, like that of laying, 
would appear to jiermit of great individual latitude. Di.scarding the old 
plumage .seems to re.semble the same process among the /yi^oscclis penguins, 
de.scribed elsewhere in this jiaper. Following the molt of the king 
])engnin’s feathers, the horny, orange shields on the mandible flake off, 
exposing fresh surfaces beneath. On the basis of a .single ob.servation I 
venture the a.s.sertion that these birds first shed their mandibular shields 
at the end of their .second summer, ] 30 ssibly just before the>- migrate to 
.sea. At any rate I .saw on Februar\’ 25, 1913, at Po.sse.s.sion Bay, a 
yearling which had cast the black lateral plates of its rami, the newly 
expo.sed surfaces being pure white. 
Ajiparent vanity and aloofne.ss are two marked traits of the king 
])enguins. The}’ dwell within a .stone’s throw of penguins, play 
in the same glacial streams and ]ionds as the latter, and follow the same 
vocation of dee]i-.sea Ashers, yet the societ}’ of the two species is almost 
inviolably di.stinct. In onh’ one in.stance did I And a king penguin as.sociat- 
ing with its .smaller relatives. This was on February 28, near the Po.s.se.ssion 
Bav colony, when one king was .seen trotting along shore in compaii)^ 
with a flock of johnnies (VI papna). The .sight was so nnu.sal that 
experienced .sealers from the Daisy' s Q.r&\\ had never seen the like. The}^ 
laughed at the lone king, and inferred that it must have been a pariah 
among its kind. King penguins commonly deport them.selves in an 
amusingly lofty manner toward human beings, jiaying slight attention to 
a man’s cpiiet intru.sion into their mid.st. If they are annoyed, thev 
march away, .slowh’ and with an air of indifference, until the}* have been 
actualh' frightened by abuse, when they fall upon their breasts and .scurrv 
on all fours. I have .seen a fox terrier ]mt a whole band of kings to 
* Judging from our knowledge of the growth of the emperor penguin {A . foista i), the king 
penguin .should be about eight months old at the completion of the molt. 
