Penguin chicks released after rescue in South Africa

Rescued youngsters released back on to Bird Island

December 2010: Forty-nine endangered African penguin juveniles have been given a new lease of life after being successfully released on to Bird Island following a rehabilitation process.

The juveniles were removed as chicks from Bird Island, which forms part of Addo Elephant National Park, in mid October when extreme cold, wet and windy weather threatened their survival. The harsh weather followed similarly brutal conditions in June which caused the death of 1,000 African penguins on the island.


When the second set of extreme weather hit in October, South African National Parks (SANParks) lifted the ailing penguin chicks off the island by helicopter to two rehabilitation centres for specialised care. SANParks has also taken extra precautions in the meantime by providing artificial shelters for penguins and using material to drain nest sites to aid penguin chick survival.

The birds have already joined the rest of the colony
Now, after a three-hour boat journey, the three-month-old chicks were released onto the slipway at Bird Island and soon joined the rest of the African penguin colony. The youngsters are expected to do well as they are now able to forage for themselves. They have all been tagged and their progress will be closely monitored.

Meanwhile, care of the remaining penguin chicks at the rehabilitation centres continues with the aim of releasing them back into the wild in the future.

There are about 1,300 breeding pairs of African penguins on Bird Island and about 2,500 breeding pairs on St Croix Island, home to the largest African Penguin breeding colony in the world.

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/penguins-bird-island.html