Hello!
We wish you all a belated Happy New Year and hope you have been enjoying the beautiful summer weather. Penguin chicks have fledged, most adults have moulted and many will have headed out for their weeks or months at sea.
This time is a mysterious time for us, unsure of what blue penguins do for the next few months. Our new microchip tagging and monitoring project will start informing us about blue penguin demographics - super breeders, where offspring go to nest etc. So we don't know where they go between moulting and the next breeding season but we are continuing to learn more so that conservation management can be the best it can be, and we'll keep you posted.
Since our early December newsletter, our rangers have wrapped up their monitoring and burrow scoping, trail camera maintenance and tracking predators. Abundant data and imagery has been collected and will now be analysed. Schools have been holidaying so I turned my focus to updating and editing the education resource for a second edition to be published soon, so watch this space! We will let you know when it is ready. I also am looking forward to working with schools again this year so we, as a community, keep on learning more about West Coast penguins so that we can help protect them.
We also said a farewell to Gerald Freeman, our Cape Foulwind Ranger, thanking him and wishing him all the best for his retirement and future endeavors.
Ranger and Trustee Robin Long has been in the media and part of penguin adventures down south again, read on for the stories.
Although the coastal dune erosion has not been as severe as during the winter months, it is still tricky to walk dogs on the beach in many places, and we are forced to be closer to or even in the dunes, so please do continue to ensure your dog is not free to roam in the dunes and coastal vegetation. We are now in the latter stages of the moulting period. When a penguin moults it cannot go to sea for two to three weeks, so they are very hungry, exhausted and stressed. This is the most vulnerable time for a penguin.
Unfortunately this summer brought us two tawaki deaths from dog attacks at Jackson Head and Jackson Bay. Any loose dog, however small and cuddly, will be tempted by the movement and smell of a penguin and we published some reminders for dog owners to help keep penguins safe.
If you see an injured penguin or any wildlife that seems to be struggling, please call DOC for assistance on 0800 DOCHOT (362 468). Please do not pick up the bird or animal, which causes more stress to them, particularly during the moult. It's very important to have an experienced ranger - from DOC or the Penguin Trust - determine whether the penguin is at risk or needs to stay where it is. We often hear of a sick or injured penguin from a member of the community, which we are very grateful for, and in most cases the penguin needs removing and assessing for treatment and rehabilitation. However, if we pick up a moulting penguin, we cause them a lot of stress and, if they are safe from dogs, they are best left where they are.
Many thanks for all your support.
We hope 2021 brings you good health, peace and lots of fun in nature!
Lucy
Education and Awareness Ranger