These penguins only come ashore under the cover of nightfall and live underground in burrows, making it a rare treat to spot them.  They are quite domestic, with long-term partnerships the norm (although "divorce" does occur). Blue Penguins are very faithful to their home site. Chicks will often return to within a few yards of where they were raised and once settled in an area, may never move. While Blue Penguin’s suffer from a high rate of juvenile mortality, individuals can reach up to as much as 25 years of age. The population of Blue Penguins is relative large, but they are rarely seen because of their small size and unusual habits. And the population and range of the species has been declining in areas not protected from predation, resulting in the New Zealand Department of Conservation ranking the Blue Penguin as lower risk - near threatened.