The chicks are guarded by one parent for the first 2-3 weeks, after which both parents must go to sea to keep up the supply of fish. Chicks usually fledge at 8 weeks and are independent from then on. Blue penguins usually breed for the first time at 2-3 years of age. Long term partnerships are the norm, but divorce is not uncommon. There is a high rate of juvenile mortality, but individuals can reach up to 25 years of age.
Blue penguins are very faithful to their home site.
Chicks will often return to within a few metres of where they were raised and once settled in an area never move away. Diet and feeding Blue penguins feed on a variety of surface schooling fish, squid and crustaceans. Although dive depths of 60m have been recorded, 10-20m is more common. The average dive time is 24 seconds. Blue penguins usually feed within 25km of the coast and may make daily round-trips of up to 75km.