[3] This species was originally given the scientific name Aptenodytes antarctica by Johann Reinhold Forster in 1781, thereby placing it in the same genus as the king and emperor penguins.

The chinstrap penguin's black back and white underside provide camouflage in the form of countershading when viewed from above or below, helping to avoid detection by its predators.

Vagrant individuals have been found in New Zealand, the islands of Saint Helena and Tristan da Cunha, and South Africa.

[1] The diet of the chinstrap penguin consists of small fish, krill, shrimp, and squid, which they swim up to 80 km (50 mi) offshore each day to obtain.

The chinstrap penguin's tightly packed feathers provide a waterproof coat, enabling it to swim in freezing waters.

Additionally, thick blubber deposits and intricate blood vessels in the flippers and legs assist in the preservation of heat.

[7] On land, they build circular nests from stones, and lay two eggs, which are incubated by both the male and the female for shifts around 6 days each.

[9] In 2004, two male chinstrap penguins named Roy and Silo in Central Park Zoo, New York City, formed a pair bond and took turns trying to "hatch" a rock, for which a keeper eventually substituted a fertile egg, and the pair subsequently hatched and raised the chick.

In several parts of its range, climate change decreases the abundance of krill, which likely makes reproduction less successful.