CAPE TOWN - A total of 120 African penguin chicks have been rescued from the Stony Point penguin colony in Betty’s Bay and are on their way to growing bigger and stronger.
The chicks were abandoned and have been admitted to the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (Sanccob), thanks to a rescue in partnership with CapeNature.
While it's an annual occurrence, Sanccob said the process was slightly different this time around.
“We are navigating the devastating avian influenza outbreak so rescued chicks have been placed in quarantine at the Durbanville base of Oil Spill Response Limited, who have kindly made their premises available to temporarily house these chicks and other seabirds while we await their lab results.
“Once cleared, the birds will be transferred to our rehabilitation facility in Table View for hand-rearing.
“Being prepared is essential. We need all your well wishes and support at this time to get the chicks back to the wild where they belong,” Sanccob said.
African penguins undergo an annual moult, or feather shedding, and during this time they cannot enter the ocean without their waterproof feathers, so chicks that haven’t fledged are not fed.
This can lead to the chicks becoming emaciated, dehydrated and anaemic.
With an estimated 10 300 breeding pairs of African penguins left in the wild in South Africa, Sanccob said their survival is critical for the species.
Cape Times