Successful penguin release
After a report in the Mossel Bay Advertiser on the alarming number of dead African Penguins recently found on local beaches, there is some good news.
Four of the eleven young birds found alive were ready to be released and together with an adult penguin, enjoyed their new-found freedom on Wednesday as a group of SAPREC (Seabird and Penguin Rehabilitation Centre) volunteers and interns from White Shark Africa, released them at Beacon Point. The adult was found badly bitten by a shark in April this year.
Vet Dr Frans de Graaff stitched the gaping neck wound and after the penguin was tube fed for a long period, the wounds healed 100%, so this extremely long rehabilitation ended in success.
The other penguins will be released as soon as they are ready. Since the start of 2017 all African penguins released by SAPREC have a microchip implanted for it to collect muchneeded information on these birds.
If a stranded African penguin is found on a beach or the rocks, immediately call one of the emergency numbers listed below. Stranded penguins usually have something wrong with them and immediate action should be taken.
If a dead penguin is found, please do not leave it on the beach or bury it because the cause of death needs to be established.
Contact Carol Walton (082 364 3382) or the Stranded Marine Animal Rescue Team (S.M.A.R.T.) on 072 227 4715 if African penguins are found.