March 31st, 2016 by Staff Report in Chattnow Outabout
A gentoo penguins builds a nest with rocks at the Tennessee Aquarium.
Photo by
Contributed Photo
/Times Free Press.
It's shaping up to be a big week in Penguins' Rock at the Tennessee Aquarium.
Already, all of the resident gentoo and macaroni penguins have been rounded up for their semi-annual physical examinations.
While they visited the staff veterinarian behind the scenes, other
staff members gave the penguins' chilly habitat a thorough spring
cleaning, says spokesman Thom Benson. Workers drained the penguin pool
and pressure-washed the entire space and performed preventive
maintenance on the exhibit's wave machine.
Next, several hundred pounds of "magic rocks" will be brought out for
the birds on Friday, April 1. And that will trigger nest-building,
signaling the start of nesting season for the penguins.
Even though experts have discredited the myth that male penguins
"propose" to females with a single pebble, both gentoo and macaroni
penguins build rock nests. The process is an important part of courtship
and bonding, Benson says.
Each spring, Aquarium aviculturists provide nesting rocks to the
penguins, and an immediate swarm of activity ensues. Like any other
romance, sometimes there's a little drama.
"While certain penguin species have long-term mates, it's not always
the case," says Tennessee Aquarium senior aviculturist Loribeth Lee.
"For example, while Hercules has nested with Shamrock in the past, last
year he raised a chick with Little Debbie."
Nest building is serious business, and penguin pairs work
meticulously to get it just right — sometimes resorting to some sneaky
antics. Nipper, a gentoo, is not the only penguin who seems to find
pleasure in plucking pebbles from another unsuspecting couple's nest.
"Rock stealing is fairly common in penguin colonies," says Lee.
"Researchers have even studied how many times rocks have been stolen and
passed from nest to nest. Here at the Aquarium you'll frequently see
gentoos and macaronis snatching rocks from another nest."
Of course, the most exciting part of nesting season is hoping for the
pitter patter of baby penguin feet later this summer, Benson says. Last
year's season brought a new macaroni and three baby gentoos, one of
which was the Aquarium's first penguin chick to be raised by foster
parents.
Keepers go on watch as soon as nesting begins, looking for eggs and
eventually chicks. The first macaroni eggs usually start showing up in
early May. The gentoos typically lag about a month behind, with their
first eggs showing up in early June.
Penguin viewing is included in regular admission at the Tennessee
Aquarium, 1 Broad St. Cost is $29.95 for adults, $18.95 for children
3-12. For more information, visit www.tnaqua.org or call 1-800-262-0695.
Gentoo penguins sitting on their eggs. Picture: RZSS/Katie Paton
GENTOO penguins at RZSS Edinburgh Zoo laid their first two eggs of the season over the Easter weekend.
The chicks are expected to hatch at the end of April or early in
May. The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, which runs the zoo, said
it hoped to have a similar number hatching as the 17 last year.
Keepers at RZSS Edinburgh Zoo
placed the annual penguin nest rings and pebbles into Penguins Rock on 1
March to kick off the penguins annual breeding season. Picture: Ian
Rutherford
Dawn Nicoll, Penguin Keeper at RZSS Edinburgh Zoo, said: “Last year
we had a very successful gentoo breeding season with 17 gentoo chicks
hatching. We are hoping to have a similarly successful year this time
around, particularly given the species’ Near Threatened status. Penguin
breeding season is always very exciting and we look forward to seeing
the chicks hatch.”
Gentoo penguins are classed as “near threatened” because of illegal
egg collection and oil exploration around the Falkland Islands, and
disturbance by tourists.
The first gentoo penguin egg hatched early last spring. Picture: Contributed
Keepers at RZSS Edinburgh Zoo are hopeful this year for the hatching
of rockhopper penguins, as well, with eight rockhopper eggs already
laid. This species is difficult to breed and keepers are hoping for the
first rockhoppers to hatch at the Zoo in more than seven years.
Photo:
Experts think many locals believe there are no longer penguins on the island. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
Against many people's expectations, a determined
colony of little penguins in South Australia is fighting back after a
decade of population decline.
Twenty-two birds were recorded in last year's census, which is roughly the same number recorded in the years since 2012.
The figures are in stark contrast to the year 2000 when there were about 1,600 penguins on the island.
While
mystery still surrounds the dramatic drop in bird numbers, and while
the population has stabilised and the remaining penguins are breeding
well, researchers say they are still in need of protection.
Dr
Diane Colombelli-Negrel is a penguin ecologist at Flinders University
and has been studying the fall in penguin numbers for three years.
She said a number of factors were thought to have contributed to the decline, including predators such as seals or dogs.
"At
the moment, the big emphasis is on parasites because we know that on a
small population that can have a drastic impact," she said.
It is also difficult to assess the drop in numbers because of a lack of historical data.
Penguins can be temporarily blinded by torch lights
Now that the colony has stabilised, Dr Colombelli-Negrel said the population needed ongoing protection to rebuild.
"This
is very important with a small number to be careful about how people
behave with those penguins and to be aware that they're there," she
said.
Photo:
Dogs are banned on the island but there are fears some people still take them there. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
Researchers have been finding that some
locals think there are no penguins left and they could be endangering
the birds by using torches or disturbing them at night.
The white light from torches can blind penguins for hours.
"Every
single day that we're out there working on the penguins, we have
comments from people saying, 'There's no penguins left on the island',
Dr Colombelli-Negre said.
"We are trying to run some workshops,
some public talks, but we are not getting a lot of interest because I
think a lot of people think there's no penguins anymore."
While dogs are banned on the island, there are concerns that visitors or locals may still take them there.
Stephen
Hedges has been running penguin tours on the island for more than 10
years and believes word is spreading in the community about the
remaining penguins.
A group of locals has also been fixing burrows and planting shrubs that penguins use for nesting materials.
Mr Hedges said many locals were interested in helping the penguins.
"I
think it's crucial, because of all the factors that are putting them
under pressure maybe out at sea, it could be their health, it could be
food, it could be climate factors," he said.
"If their home, where
their burrows are, if we can do the best we can with that part of their
lives, if we can make that part of it successful, then we're doing
hopefully all we can."
Photo:
As well as running penguin-spotting tours, locals have been looking after the environment the penguins nest in. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
No one rocks a tuxedo quite like a penguin — especially an Adélie penguin, the species we most associate with that image of the dapper bird. Not only are they the best-dressed bird this side of the Antarctic, but Adélie penguins are also crafty — and by crafty, we mean downright criminal.
Dyan deNapoli
The Adélie penguin is one of four penguin species in Antarctica. But as cute as they are, they're not known for their gentility. "Gentoo penguins are more mellow and curious about people," Dyan deNapoli, penguin expert, TED speaker and author of "The Great Penguin Rescue," told The Dodo. "They will walk up to you. But Adélie penguins don't behave that way. They are a little more aloof."
Dyan deNapoli
And although friendly with one another, they can be a bit sneaky and aggressive when it comes to their nest. In fact, they're thieves. Adélie penguins are one of the few penguin species to use rocks when building their nest. "They
will collect a lot of rocks to elevate the egg because, when snow
starts to melt, if the egg is right on the ground it will drown,"
deNapoli said. "So they'll build a nest out of rocks to elevate the egg
off the surface."
Then they resort to some underhanded behavior. Stealing.
"It's
a lot less energy and effort to steal a rock than to go find one,"
deNapoli said. "They'll steal a rock from a neighbor's nest so they
don't have to go hunting further away like down to the shoreline."
And
with these two penguins (see video below), they will just keep
repeating the pattern. Find the rock. Place the rock. Steal the rock.
Over and over.
"That penguin is somewhat clever not having to
work as hard," deNapoli said, referring to the video below. "He's pretty
clever because he's taking a shortcut. He's just going to pinch rocks
from the neighbor's nest."
... with Michael Brissenden
Natalie Whiting reported this story on Monday, March 28, 2016
KIM LANDERS: Against expectations a determined colony of little penguins
in South Australia is fighting back after years of population decline.
Mystery
still surrounds why there was a dramatic drop in birds on Granite
Island. Numbers fell from more than 1500 to between 20 and 30.
While researchers say the population is stabilising, locals could now be putting the birds at risk by
using torches and bringing dogs onto the island.
Our reporter Natalie Whiting visited Granite Island and filed this report.
STEVE HEDGES (excerpt from penguin tour): Stephen is my name and I am looking forward to tonight's tour...
NATALIE
WHITING: It's dusk on Granite Island, just off the coast of Victor
Harbour, and local Steve Hedges is leading a penguin tour.
STEVE
HEDGES (excerpt from penguin tour): We're going to start our tour here.
This is probably one of their favourite landing spots just in here
where...
NATALIE WHITING: It's harder to spot a penguin here than it once was.
STEVE HEDGES (excerpt from penguin tour): All right, looks like no-one's in tonight.
NATALIE WHITING: March is also a notoriously hard time to find penguins because they aren't breeding.
(Sounds of people walking)
NATALIE WHITING: A small group of tourists follows as he searches burrows.
So it took a little over an hour, but we did end up finding one. What can you tell us about this penguin in front of us?
STEVE HEDGES: Well, it appears to be a male because we are getting a little bit of a growl coming back.
But
it's been fascinating that this one has been coming in and staying in
for nearly a week now, which is a surprise because normally I would be
thinking it would be getting hungry and heading off.
NATALIE
WHITING: In 2012 there were 1500 penguins on the island. That's slowly
declined until 2012 when just 28 penguins were counted.
The figures from last year's census have just been released. Twenty-two birds were recorded.
Dr
Diane Colombelli-Negrel is a penguin ecologist at Flinders University
and has been studying the fall in penguin numbers for three years.
A number of factors are thought to have contributed to the decline.
DIANE
COLOMBELLI-NEGREL: Well at the moment, the big emphasis is on parasites
because we know that on small population that can have a drastic
impact.
NATALIE WHITING: Now that the colony has stabilised, Dr
Colombelli-Negrel says the population needs ongoing protection to
rebuild.
DIANE COLOMBELLI-NEGREL: This is very important with a
small number to be careful about how people behave with those penguins
and to be aware that they're there.
NATALIE WHITING: Unfortunately the big drop has convinced many people that the penguins are gone.
DIANE
COLOMBELLI-NEGREL: Every single day that we're out there working on the
penguins, we have comments from people saying, "there's no penguin life
on the island".
We are trying to run some workshops, some
public talks, but we are not getting a lot of interest because I think a
lot of people think there's no penguins anymore.
NATALIE
WHITING: There's concern about people making a lot of noise or using
torches at night. The white light can blind the penguins for hours.
But Steve Hedges believes word is spreading in the community about the remaining penguins.
There's also a dedicated group of locals helping the birds.
STEVE HEDGES: We are monitoring every night on Granite Island. There's a lot of people interested, lots of people keen.
NATALIE
WHITING: There is some rejuvenation work happening, some burrows been
built and plants that the penguins will appreciate.
How important is that sort of work in hoping to attract and keep the colony?
STEVE
HEDGES: I think it's crucial because if all the factors that are
putting them under pressure maybe out at sea, it could be their health,
it could be food, it could be climate factors, if their home, where
their burrows are, if we can do the best we can with that part of their
lives, if we can make that part of it successful, then we're doing all,
hopefully all we can.
KIM LANDERS: Granite Island penguin tour guide Stephen Hedges ending Natalie Whiting's report.
Blue penguin was found covered in blood in St Kilda on Friday morning
Was discovered by an Earthcare St Kilda worker inside a fenced off area
Second attack in two weeks, another penguin was kicked and later died
Parks Victoria said better protection for the colony is being looked into
By
Peter Devlin
and
Ashleigh Davis For Daily Mail Australia
Published:
26 March 2016
A
penguin has been found covered in blood after an attack believed to
have been carried out by a group of young men in St Kilda in the early
hours of Friday morning.
The
blue penguin was found by an Earthcare St Kilda volunteer inside a
fenced off area created to protect the birds at about 1.30am. ‘Those
who delivered the attack are very sick, gutless, criminal who should
not be at liberty in our community,’ the volunteer group wrote in a
Facebook post on Friday.
Scroll down for video
An image from the Earthcare St Kilda Facebook page showing the bloodied penguin after the incident
This follows an attack two weeks ago when tourists saw a young man kick a penguin repeatedly inside the fence. The penguin’s dead body was later found and reported to police.
Parks
Victoria's Melbourne regional director Chris Hardman said the penguins
at St Kilda were protected native wildlife and a tourist attraction, and
efforts to better protect the colony were being looked into.
'We've
done some preliminary planning to look at how we could manage the site
including fencing, a controlled entry point, and establishing a viewing
platform that separates people and penguins,' he said. 'Parks Victoria has recently met with Philip Island Nature Reserve to seek advice on the best way forward.'
Parks Victoria plans on working with Earthcare and other volunteers to get a better solution for the penguins.
A post from the Earthcare Facebook page condemning the attack on the penguin early on Friday morning
People were quick to take to social media to condemn the attack. Valentina
La Piana said: 'Such treachery! I can't believe anyone would want or
could harm such small and defenceless creatures. It makes me sick to my
stomach and makes my blood boil! With so much surveillance surely theses
barbaric thugs will be caught and when they do they should face
prosecution and the full weight of the law - bloody outrageous!'
A pengiun pictured at St Kilda beach in Melbourne. This is the second attack on penguins in the area in the past two weeks
Steve
Mitchee said: 'As a animal lover this is a very sad day, I would like
to get a hold of the horrible half wit's who did this to those poor
creatures. I just hope for once the law will do the right thing.'
Cassandra
Wilson said: What kind of sick demented people would harm an
defenseless penguin for entertainment? So tragic, I can't believe such
terrible, disgusting people exist.'
Suggestions
on social media for how to keep the penguins safe in the future have
ranged from better education for the public, a fenced-off area for the
birds and even completely removing the penguins from the habitat.
Parks Victoria's Chris Hardman said
the penguins at St Kilda were protected native wildlife and a tourist
attraction, and efforts to better protect the colony were being looked
into
Chris Hardiman said preliminary
planning to look at how the site could be managed includes fencing, a
controlled entry point, and establishing a viewing platform that
separates people and penguins
The penguins at St Kilda beach in Melbourne (pictured) are a popular attraction for tourists
Meghan Hindley, Trainee Reporter / Saturday 26 March 2016
STAFF at Weymouth SEA LIFE Adventure Park got an unexpected Easter
treat when they discovered their two newest penguin residents laid two
eggs.
Mango and Yew who were previously at the Seaview Wildlife Encounter in
the Isle of Wight were brought to Weymouth SEA LIFE Adventure Park to
join the existing colony of 11 Humboldt penguins at Christmas.
The two new residents have wasted no time settling into their new home with two new eggs being laid, to the surprise of staff.
Humboldt Penguins moult once a year in June and replace all of their
feathers with new ones. They are a vulnerable species and as a result of
this, Weymouth SEA LIFE Adventure Park started a breeding program in
2001 to help sustain numbers in captivity due to their drastic decline
in the wild.
With only about 12,000 Humboldt’s left in the wild,
breeding colonies throughout centres will help to sustain numbers in
captivity and will also help to raise awareness of their conservation
status.
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When the chicks hatch, they are helpless and blind. After a few hours,
they are able to open their eyes, lift up their head and beg for food.
The first weeks are very dangerous for a chick, as it can not regulate
its body temperature, and therefore completely depends on their
parents.
Penguin chicks Cogsworth, Bagheera, Abu, Scuttle and Thumper at Folly Farm.
Bruce Sinclair, Reporter / Friday 25 March 2016
SEVEN penguins at Folly Farm’s Penguin Coast have flown the nest,
leaving their Pembrokeshire home, to find love and settle down elsewhere
in the UK.
Numbers of Humboldt penguins are decreasing globally and as part of
the Endangered Species Breeding Programme, it has been recommended that
Folly Farm’s unpaired penguins move on to other zoos so they can breed.
The seven penguins - Abu, Scuttle, Cogsworth, Screwball, Bagheera, Boo, and Thumper, hatched last year.
The keepers at Folly Farm’s penguin nursery ensured they grasped all the key penguin life skills.
Penguin keeper Catrin Thomas said: “Penguins mate for life, and almost all of ours have already paired off.
“You could tell these seven youngsters were looking for love as some
of the females were trying to flirt with males that were already taken,
so we knew it was the right time for them to look for partners further
afield.”
“It was quite emotional seeing them go as we’d known them since they
had hatched and had such a close bond. But we understand the importance
of the breeding programme, and we wish them luck in finding their soul
mate.
Keepers will soon have some new arrivals to get to know as the couples
remaining at Penguin Coast are currently sitting on eggs.
While all the couples are happy together their parenting styles do vary.
“The couple take turns, with one sitting on the egg whilst the other goes into the pool for fish,” said Catrin.
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“Most of the new mums and dads are pretty good, except for Percy who
hasn’t been very interested. Puffy, his girlfriend, has been sitting on
the egg whilst he has been spending most of his time at the pool, eating
fish.
“They’ve been parents before and once the chick has hatched he’s
usually very hands on, so hopefully when he sees his new offspring he’ll
return to the attentive dad we know.”
A Gentoo penguin building a nest at the Tennessee aquarium.
Photo by
Contributed Photo
/Times Free Press.
Chattanooga, Tenn. (March 25, 2016) – Experts at the Tennessee
Aquarium are preparing for the start of the 2016 nesting season at
Penguins' Rock. This process will begin on March 30 with a bit of a
rodeo.
At a waddle's pace, all of the Gentoo and Macaronis will be rounded
up for a trip behind the scenes to visit the Aquarium's veterinarian.
While all of the birds are getting their semi-annual physical
examinations, other staff members will give the chilly habitat a
thorough spring cleaning. They will drain the penguin pool and pressure
wash the entire exhibit while also performing preventative maintenance
on the exhibit's wave machine.
On April 1, several hundred pounds of "magic rocks" will be brought
out for the birds. This triggers the somewhat frenzied nest-building
activities that usually lasts until the first eggs start appearing about
one month later.
Even though experts have discredited the myth that male penguins
"propose" to females with a single pebble, both Gentoo and Macaroni
penguins build rock nests. The process is an important part of courtship
and bonding. Each spring, aquarium aviculturists provide nesting rocks
to the penguins and an immediate swarm of activity ensues.
Nesting season is always a fun time to visit the Aquarium to observe
some of the most peculiar penguin behaviors seen throughout the year.
And, just like any other romance, sometimes there's a little drama.
"While certain penguin species have long-term mates, it's not always the
case," Tennessee Aquarium senior aviculturist Loribeth Lee said. "For
example, while Hercules has nested with Shamrock in the past, last year
he raised a chick with Little Debbie."
Nest building is serious business and penguin pairs work meticulously
to get it just right – sometimes resorting to some sneaky antics.
Gentoo Penguin Nipper is not the only penguin who seems to find pleasure
in plucking pebbles from another unsuspecting couple's nest. "Rock
stealing is fairly common in penguin colonies," Lee said . "Researchers
have even studied how many times rocks have been stolen and passed from
nest to nest. Here at the Aquarium you'll frequently see Gentoos and
Macaronis snatching rocks from another nest."
Of course, the most exciting part of nesting season is hoping for the
pitter patter of baby penguin feet later this summer. Last year's
season brought a new Macaroni and three baby Gentoos – one of which was
the Aquarium's first penguin chick to be raised by foster parents.
Keepers go on watch as soon as nesting begins, looking for eggs and
eventually chicks. The first Macaroni eggs usually start showing up in
early May. The Gentoos typically lag about one month behind with their
first eggs showing up in early June. "Every nesting season is different
and fun," Lee said. "It's hard to tell who enjoys watching it unfold the
mostAquarium staff and volunteers or our guests."
Little penguins may be making a recovery on Granite Island, Victor Harbor. Picture: Nedra Haines.FIVE
little penguin chicks from five breeding pairs on Granite Island at
Victor Harbor represent a ray of hope for the colony after years of
decline, a Flinders University researcher says.
Ecologist
Dr Diane Colombelli-Négrel has released the results of the latest
penguin census, which suggests numbers on Granite Island have
stabilised. “There used to be hundreds of little penguins when community counts began in 2001,” she said. “The
2001 census found an estimated 1548 adults, so the decline has been
steep. Estimates fell from 828 in 2002, to only 102 in 2011 and 26
penguins in 2012.”
But since then, numbers have been fairly steady. In 2013 there were 38 little penguins, in 2014 there were 32. The
last count, in October, found an estimated 22 penguins including five
breeding pairs. From those, five chicks fledged last year.
Dr Colombelli-Négrel said the future for the little
penguins was “still uncertain, to be honest” because they were dealing
with so many threats, including predation on land and at sea, food
shortages and more parasites and diseases from warmer water with climate
change. “You can’t just point the finger at the seal and ‘that’s it’,” she said.
But
there is hope for the penguin colony, if factors decreasing their
number were removed they can come up again, Dr Colombelli-Négrel said. “It
could be that numbers are just returning to a normal level because in
the past there weren’t that many penguins on Granite Island,” Dr
Colombelli-Négrel said. “We have information that in the 1980s
that there were 500 to 600 penguins on the island, so it seems there has
been a boom around 2000-2001. Penguins are opportunistic, if they find a good spot they take advantage of it.”
National
Parks SA Fleurieu district ranger in charge Paul Unsworth said Easter
was a good time to remind visitors that dogs were not allowed on the
island. “This is a protective measure for penguins as well as the other birds and animals that call the island home,” he said.
It
is also important to be careful with torches because bright lights can
blind penguins for hours and make them vulnerable to attack.
A penguin at the end of St Kilda pier. Photo: Joe Armao
Two little penguins from the famous St Kilda colony have been
brutalised and left for dead in separate violent attacks in the past
fortnight, volunteers say. A penguin with a bloody face and chest
was discovered inside the fence meant to protect the colony around St
Kilda Pier, about 1.30am on Good Friday, by a volunteer. It
follows an attack a fortnight ago where German tourists saw a young man
kick a penguin repeatedly, also inside the fence. The penguin's dead
body was found soon after and reported to police.
Volunteers say penguins have been attacked in two separate incidents in recent weeks. Photo: Angela Wylie
Volunteer Ivan Leong, who was at St Kilda Pier on both occasions,
said he confronted a group of about five young men early on Friday
morning and asked them to leave the colony in peace "They were drunk and started climbing all over the rocks, harassing
the penguins, chasing them and grabbing them," he said. "I screamed at
them to stop it." However, Mr Leong said tourists alerted him to a
bleeding penguin about 20 minutes later and he found it with a deep cut
under its right eye. The penguin's mate also had some blood on her.
A penguin at the St Kilda breakwater. Photo: Ken Irwin
He was unable to help the animals when he could not raise other people because of the late hour.
"I do not have the authority to remove the penguins so I had to leave the birds. All I could do was take photos."
A photo of the hurt bird was uploaded onto Earthcare St Kilda's Facebook page, prompting a stream of emotional responses.
Mr Leong returned later with other volunteers to search for
five hours, but found nothing. "We've scoured the area where I last saw
the penguin but have had no luck," he said. "I'm feeling quite horrible
at the moment, I'm hoping that it has survived but it will have a nasty
scar at the very least."
The latest attack follows an unreported
case on the night of March 11 where a man was seen kicking a bird,
encouraged by a large group of friends. The man is described as tall and
lanky with dyed pink hair.
Several witnesses then alerted
volunteers, who were taking tourists on guided penguin walks, and showed
them where the dead penguin was. Mr Leong said the pink-haired man had been seen annoying the penguins on other occasions.
Another
Earthcare volunteer Andrew Falbo said he had reported the attacks to St
Kilda police but was told that it would be time consuming to trawl
through CCTV footage taken nearby. "They have been useless," he said. Mr
Falbo has also tried to get Parks Victoria to take action to better
protect the penguins, but was told there are not enough funds, he said. He
called for the fencing to be replaced, gates to St Kilda Marina locked
at night and upgraded CCTV cameras, among with other improvements. "Fisherman should be banned from fishing off the rocks. It's just common decency and respect," he said.
Parks
Victoria regional director Chris Hardman told Fairfax Media on Saturday
the organisation has recently met Phillip Island Nature Reserve to seek
advice on how to best protect the colony. "We've done some
preliminary planning to look at how we could manage the site, including
fencing, a controlled entry point and establishing a viewing platform
that separates people and penguins."
He said the "disturbing" attack was "extremely upsetting for our rangers and the community."
"This
type of behaviour is unacceptable. We are keen to work with Victoria
Police to ensure that people who do this are prosecuted to the full
extent of the law."
Port Phillip Council Mayor Bernadene Voss
condemned the "cowardly attacks on these gentle creatures" and pledged
to provide support to Parks Victoria and the police. About 1000 little blue penguins, also known as fairy penguins, live at St Kilda.
Victoria Police and Parks Victoria have been contacted for comment.
Mauao Area Wildlife Trust’s Julia Graham looking through a penguin burrow at Mauao base track. Photo: Tracy Hardy.
If penguins could talk, the estimated 800 Little Blue penguins living
on Mauao must shriek with excitement every time a cruise ship glides
past their home into Tauranga Harbour.
“Yippee, here comes another few thousand dollars to keep our homes safe lads,” they'd say.
And the cruise ship passengers are happy to help.
Tourism Bay of Plenty chief executive Rhys Arrowsmith says the Cruise
iPort has this year received donations from cruise ship passengers
wanting a stamp memento of their visit.
Through this, passengers and Tourism BOP have been able to support
Mauao Area Wildlife Trust in caring for the penguins and grey-faced
petrel colonies.
“It's great to be able to help give back and fund this, as so many
cruise passengers enjoy walking up and around Mauao each season,” says
Rhys.
Mauao Area Wildlife Trust's pest control funding expires in April, so
Rhys says the funding is perfect timing to help the trust continue to
maintain and bait the current lines and add new ones.
The $2,400 donation will specifically go towards the sponsoring of
eight penguins and two grey faced petrels, the purchase of two
gas-powered resettable rodent/mustelid trap and lures and one
gas-powered resettable possum trap and lure.
Funds will also go towards purchasing plants and equipment for
revegetation of native bird nesting areas to provide cover and extra
nesting places and prevent erosion.
Mauao Area Wildlife Trust's Julia Graham says donations are important in helping care for the penguins and petrels.
“There's not a lot of places for them to go. It's important that we look after them.”
Julia says pest control is an ongoing expense, and a big one.
“It takes a lot of money, time and equipment. It's great to be able
to continue caring for our penguins and petrels for another year.
“It's very timely. We would have found a way, but it means we can
concentrate on other things.” The ‘other things' including planting on
Moturiki island, known as Leisure Island.
Julia is pleased cruise ship passengers want to learn about Mauao's wildlife and help care for them.
“Many of them spend a lot of time on Mauao and Moturiki Island. They
think it's amazing and they're so happy to be able to put something back
into this area.”
It means passengers will spread the word about how wonderful Mauao is. “We should be really proud.”
All birds on Mauao are micro-chipped or wear identification bands, but not all are named.
The Weekend Sun and Mauao Area Wildlife Trust are running a
competition for the best female and male penguin name. Send your
suggestions to Penguinsplus@gmail.com The winner will be announced at the end of March.
To donate to Mauao Area Wildlife Trust, visit Mauao Area Wildlife Trust on Facebook, or www.mauaowildlife.org
Ski
Dubai is pleased to announce the birth of Peter, the Gentoo chick,
joining its penguin family. The healthy chick hatched on December 22.
Courtesy Ski Dubai
The National staff
DUBAI // Four new gentoo penguin chicks have hatched, joining the penguin family at Ski Dubai.
Peter
hatched in December within the gentoo colony as part of Ski Dubai’s
snow penguin breeding programme, while Litmit, Apple and Pecan hatched
in January.
Peter’s proud parents, Sneezy and Mr Sim, had been taking turns to protect their nest, eagerly awaiting their offspring.
Peter’s gender is currently unknown as Ski Dubai awaits the results of DNA testing, which are expected in the coming weeks.
The other three chicks are currently in the feeding and exploring stages of their development.
Peter
Dickinson, head of Ski Dubai’s penguin department, said: “Peter, who is
progressing fast, currently weights about 8kg, and is checked daily to
ensure that enough weight is gained, in line with our development
measures. Peter recently tried swimming for the first time with the
adult penguins, which we’re pleased to say was a great success, as this
is a very important milestone for any growing penguin chick."
The
Penguin Encounter at Ski Dubai first opened with the arrival of 10 king
and 10 gentoo penguins in February 2012 and is now home to 28 penguins,
including the four new chicks.
Human spring started on Sunday—but more importantly, penguin nesting
season started Wednesday. In the Shedd Aquarium’s penguin habitat,
penguins are building adorable, rock-hard nests out of sticks and
(literally) rocks.
Nest-building is an annual ritual penguins perform in anticipation of
mating season. Male penguins search the habitat for rocks that will
intrigue female penguins. Some proceed to build giant rock-nests, while
other, chiller penguins take a minimalist approach.
The video of the nest-building process, below, is adorable—love an
ungainly penguin waddle!—but also, listen. It’s 2016, and humans have
built computers and smartphones. When are penguins going to start building their nests out of comfy materials? When will penguins invent a penguin-couch?
Syracuse, N.Y. — The Rosemond Gifford Zoo introduces another
penguin chick to the public. They are not sure of the gender but the zoo
is asking the community to help name the chick. A contest will be
announced at a later date.
There have been 6 penguin chicks born since December 5, 2015. The
first three were named by the zookeepers. Estrella, female, was born
December 5, 2015. Her name means "star" in Spanish. Luis, male, was
born February 20, 2016, He name means "famous warrior" in Spanish.
Elmer, male, was born February 21, 2016. Elmer's egg, which suffered a
crack early on, was successfully hatched after Zoo Director Ted Fox
applied Elmer's Glue to repair the fissure.
The Penguin Camera is located on Torgersen Island (64°46’S, 64°04’W), off the coast of Anvers Island and less than a mile from Palmer Station. Torgersen Island is home to a colony of Adélie penguins numbering approximately 2,500. This camera is seasonal and operates primarily from October to February, the Adélie breeding season. The camera is solar-powered and may sometimes experience brief outages due to inclement weather. School classrooms and other educational demonstrations will often take control of the camera, moving it to gain better views of the colony.
Photo:
Experts think many locals believe there are no longer penguins on the island. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
Photo:
Dogs are banned on the island but there are fears some people still take them there. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
Photo:
As well as running penguin-spotting tours, locals have been looking after the environment the penguins nest in. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
Photo:
Experts think many locals believe there are no longer penguins on the island. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
Photo:
Dogs are banned on the island but there are fears some people still take them there. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
Photo:
As well as running penguin-spotting tours, locals have been looking after the environment the penguins nest in. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting) 
With only about 12,000 Humboldt’s left in the wild,
breeding colonies throughout centres will help to sustain numbers in
captivity and will also help to raise awareness of their conservation
status.
A penguin at the end of St Kilda pier. Photo: Joe Armao
Volunteers say penguins have been attacked in two separate incidents in recent weeks. Photo: Angela Wylie
A photo of the hurt bird was uploaded onto Earthcare St Kilda's Facebook page, prompting a stream of emotional responses.
