Hundreds of abandoned chicks saved this season
No fewer than 279 abandoned African penguin chicks were rescued and rehabilitated during the Oct-Jan chick season – thanks to our staff, volunteers from around the world, and the generosity of our wonderful donors, who provided thousands of rands towards the cost of food and veterinary supplies. Rehabilitating a chick can take anything from six weeks to three months, depending on their size and condition at admission to SANCCOB. Once they are at the correct age, weight, are healthy and have waterproof feathers, the birds are released back into established penguin colonies on a weekly basis.
“This is the first penguin release I’ve been part of and it’s a memory I’ll cherish forever,” said volunteer Tracy Camp, a senior penguin and pinniped trainer at Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut, USA. “To be part of the bigger picture, doing our part to help this endangered species is more than I could have ever imagined.”
Sincere thanks to everyone who joined in to help save these precious chicks.