Monday, December 29, 2014

Man-made nest helping reestablish penguin populations


 
22 hours ago by Kim in Conservation, Why research? 
 
The second smallest species of penguin is the Galapagos penguin.  Weighing in around five and a half pounds, this penguin has found itself on the endangered species list.  With fewer than 1,000 breeding pairs in the world, they are in need of human help to reestablish their populations.  “Dr. Dee Boersma of the University of Washington and her research team have built 120 high-quality, shady nest sites (“penguin condos”) since 2010 on three major islands where penguins currently breed — Isabela, Fernandina, and Bartolomé.”  These nests are working! “  As of July 2014, ten of the constructed nest sites contained eggs or chicks.”  It is awesome to see this work being done to protect this endangered species.

Read more about the man-made nests and the work of Dr. Boersma:   http://www.galapagos.org/conservation/increasing-the-galapagos-penguin-population/

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