PENGUIN NEWS
The penguin breeding season is now in full swing! Visitors to the Penguin Parade over the next few months, will see males calling out to attract females outside their burrows, courtship and even mating. The parade tends to get quite noisy with all the activity going on! You can look forward to new chicks hatching in early October. At the moment there are good numbers of penguins coming ashore - an average about 500+ every night.
Don’t forget daylight savings which starts on 6 October. The penguins are clever and will turn their watches forward so the new penguin arrival time will be approximately 6.45p.m. For a full schedule of penguin arrival times throughout the year click here.
By the end of October, customers can enjoy new recycled plastic seating at the general viewing area at the Penguin Parade which will improve the comfort of the viewing experience while helping the environment!
With longer daylight hours, a wide range of new and exciting menus are available the Nobbies Centre for you to enjoy. Contact us on 5951 2820 to find out more.
Don’t forget to make your bookings for December and January as early as possible; the Penguin Parade gets extremely busy during the summer months so booking well in advance is advisable. Our 3 Parks Pass is our best value ticket and it’s valid for up to six months. Click here to visit our ticketing website.
At the moment, we have some great promotions with fabulous deals and prizes to win. Our Seniors Promotion includes overnight accommodation at Quest Apartments, a 3 parks pass, entry to the Australian Garden at Cranbourne Botanic Gardens, lunch at Churchill Island Cafe and dinner at The Nobbies Centre: all for just $150 per person. It’s the perfect spring time getaway!
Book your tickets online and be in our Web Promotion where you can win fantastic prizes including an Accommodation Prize Pack with a 3 Parks Pass, Dickies products, a Penguin Foundation membership and penguin photo experiences.
School Holidays are the perfect time to visit the Nature Park. Explore the island's natural wonders with our rangers on activities including Beach Magic, Rockpool Rambles, Mystery Koala Prowls and lots more.
At Churchill Island Heritage Farm, enjoy daily fun farming activities including milking Daisy the cow, shearing demonstrations, working sheep dogs, horse-drawn wagon rides and lots more.
Events
The 5th Annual Garden Lovers Festival takes place on Sunday 9 November at Churchill Island and is proudly sponsored by Seasol. There’ll be lots of fun family activities on the day as well as demonstrations from leading Gardening experts including Kevin Walsh, author of ‘Waterwise Gardening’ and gardening columnist for The Age newspaper for over 10 years.
We are crossing our fingers for luck in the upcoming Victorian Tourism Awards. We have submitted submissions in three categories: Ecotourism, Education and Training, and Major Tourist Attraction. We have achieved a lot of success in recent years having won the Ecotourism Award in both 2006 and 2007 and we are a Hall of Fame winner in the Major Tourist Attraction category.
Churchill Island was recently awarded Museum Accreditation through Museums Victoria. This further cements this historic farm as a rare and unique destination.
Phillip Island Nature Parks now has Advanced Ecotourism Certification for 12 of its products. This is the highest number of advanced ecotourism products for any attraction in Australia and highlights our environmental commitment and achievements.
We welcome back the Short-tailed Shearwaters to Phillip Island. These migratory birds have spent the past six months feeding in waters off the coast of Alaska and have returned to Phillip Island to breed. Their sunset return each night after a day’s fishing is a spectacular sight.
Happy birthday Penguin Foundation!
Celebrating its 3rd birthday in October, the Penguin Foundation raises and allocates funds to projects ranging from penguin rescue and rehabilitation in the event of a man-made disaster; to building new penguin nesting areas; monitoring penguin health and behavior; and protecting the Little Penguins’ natural environment.
The most rewarding way to support the Penguin Foundation is to ‘Adopt a Penguin’ of your own or give one to a close friend or relative. You will be connecting with the heart of the Foundation’s work and be able to follow the progress of your adopted penguin and that of the Penguin Foundation’s many projects.
It makes the perfect Christmas gift so why not adopt a penguin today! Click HERE! to adopt a penguin or for more information.
OUR HEROS
The Nature Park has a strong team of dedicated professionals who work tirelessly to help protect and preserve the Little Penguins and their habitat on Phillip Island. One such hero is Marg Healy, who works at our Animal Hospital at the Penguin Parade. Marg has over 20 years of wildlife rehabilitation experience including 17 years rehabilitating wildlife at the Nature Park. During her 17 years, Marg has managed the rehabilitation and release of oiled Little Penguins during six major oil spills involving the Phillip Island Nature Park. In 2000, she was part of a team that assisted with the rehabilitation and release of 20,000 oiled African penguins in Cape Town, South Africa. Marg regularly gives talks on oceanic pollution issues and conducts seabird rehabilitation workshops periodically. As part of her role with the Nature Park, Marg is state advisor on seabird rehabilitation with Wildlife Victoria and has presented nationally on seabird issues.
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