Biggest king penguin colony shrinks 90%

PARIS - The planet's largest colony of king penguins has declined by nearly 90 percent in three decades, researchers said on Monday.

The last time scientists set foot on France's remote Ile aux Cochons - roughly halfway between the tip of Africa and Antarctica - the island was blanketed by 2 million of the flightless birds, which stand about a meter tall.

But recent satellite images and photos taken from helicopters show the population has collapsed, with barely 200,000 remaining, according to a study published in Antarctic Science.