SEABIRD RESEARCH
Post-release monitoring of rehabilitated and released seabirds
SANCCOB admits over 2000 seabirds at its two seabird hospitals annually and is proud of its remarkable release rates of 75-85% of all African penguins released back into the wild. For most other seabird species, SANCCOB achieves a >50% release rate, which is because many flying seabirds can only be captured once they are severely injured or emaciated, or immobile and their rehabilitation is much more difficult compared to African penguins.
SANCCOB’s work is only successful in terms of conservation if rehabilitated and released birds join the wild population to breed in the wild. SANCCOB conducts several post-release monitoring programmes, jointly with our partners, the managing authorities and organisations such as SAFRING.
African penguins released from SANCCOB are inserted with subcutaneous Passive Integrated Transponders (PIT) and are monitored using remote ground readers and hand-held readers at all major seabird breeding colonies.
All flying seabirds released from SANCCOB are ringed with metal rings, issued by SAFRING, who also compile all resighting data. To facilitate easier resightings several species have been equipped with larger colour rings prior to being released from SANCCOB.
SANCCOB relies on the public to report any ringed seabirds to SAFRING. If you find a live seabird or a seabird carcass on the beach, please check for identification rings and report the full number (including letters) to SAFRING. If you spot a colour ringed bird in the wild, report the colour of the ring and the letter/number combination to SAFRING or SANCCOB.
Post-release monitoring for other seabird species is more complicated as flying birds are not as easily detected when returning to colonies; they are often easily disturbed by human presence and often breed in large numbers, thus trying to find a marked seabird among hundreds of wild birds can be difficult. All flying seabirds released from SANCCOB are ringed with metal rings, issued by SAFRING, who also compile all resighting data. To facilitate easier resightings (as metal rings can often only be read when one has the bird in hand), in recent years, several species have been equipped with larger colour rings prior to being released from SANCCOB. Our current post-release monitoring focusses on gull and tern species including Kelp gulls, Hartlaub’s gulls and Swift terns; SANCCOB frequently admits these species from urban areas where seabirds breed on roof tops, causing human-wildlife conflict. It is therefore important to understand if the rescue of these birds, their rehabilitation and return into the wild is a successful conservation intervention or what preventative measures could be implemented to minimise the threats to these species when breeding in urban environments. Post-release monitoring has demonstrated that Swift tern chicks are not easily released back into the wild after rehabilitation as they rely on their parents to provide food for several months, even after the young has left the nests. Therefore, the removal of tern chicks is not a desired conservation intervention, due to the species’ extended post-fledgling care.
The mass abandonment of Cape cormorant chicks that occurred in January 2021 resulted in over 1,200 Cape cormorant fledglings released back into the wild after being hand-reared at SANCCOB. To assess the success of this intervention, all released birds were fitted with metal bands and over 700 cormorants were fitted with colour rings. Reported resightings of colour ringed Cape cormorants confirms that these birds integrated with the wild population however the analysis of how many birds successfully recruited into the wild breeding population will only become apparent in coming years when these individuals start to breed.
SANCCOB relies on the public to report any ringed seabirds to SAFRING. If you find a live seabird or a seabird carcass on the beach, please check for identification rings and report the full number (including letters) to SAFRING. If you spot a colour ringed bird in the wild, report the colour of the ring and the letter/number combination to SAFRING or SANCCOB.
Bolstering the Wild Population
Analyses of thousands of transpondered penguins have confirmed that SANCCOB’s released African penguins’ survival and breeding in the wild compare to penguins in the wild that have not undergone rehabilitation. Thus, our efforts to support the conservation of the African penguins through hand-rearing of chicks and the rehabilitation of oiled, injured and emaciated adults is a worthwhile endeavour and assists to bolster the wild population
African penguin Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) Project
Since 2013, more than 16,000 African penguins have been marked with PIT, both in wild colonies and as released seabirds from rehabilitation centres in South Africa. SANCCOB Penguin & Seabird Rangers along with conservation authorities’ staff are equipped with hand-held readers and encounter marked birds on a weekly basis during their nest check monitoring, thus also obtaining valuable information on the breeding status of these individuals.
Due to the generous funding from the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) SAFE programme, 13 ground readers have been installed in 7 of the main seabird breeding colonies in South Africa plus one reader in Namibia. These remote readers are placed along main pathways into the colonies and marked penguins walk over a long cable antenna when leaving the colony to go to sea and when returning to attend to their eggs and chicks in the colony. The detection of marked birds allows us to assess their survival probability using mark-recapture models.
But they can tell us even more. We are now discovering that they penguins visit several colonies before eventually deciding on where to breed. The transponder data has also revealed that many penguins chose a different colony to breed that was different to where they hatched and fledged. This is most likely linked to breeding sites with good food availability rather than returning to their natal colony.
Since 2013, more than 10,000 African penguins have been marked with PIT, both in wild colonies and as released seabirds from rehabilitation centres in South Africa. All African penguins released from SANCCOB, including hand-reared chicks and other seabirds that were rehabilitated due to injuries, oiling or emaciation, are marked with transponders in addition to fledglings and breeding adults in the wild seabird colonies. SANCCOB Penguin & Seabird Rangers along with conservation authorities’ staff are equipped with hand-held readers and encounter marked birds on a weekly basis during their nest check monitoring, thus also obtaining valuable information on the breeding status of these individuals.
Due to the generous funding from the American Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) SAFE programme, 11 ground readers have been installed in 6 of the main seabird breeding colonies in South Africa. These remote readers are placed along main pathways into the colonies and marked penguins walk over a long cable antenna when leaving the colony to go to sea and when returning to attend to their eggs and chicks in the colony. The data from these readers is regularly downloaded and has provided an interesting insight into the penguins’ behaviour. The detection of marked birds allows us to assess their survival probability using mark-recapture models. It is possible to compare the survival probability of wild penguins, both chicks and adults, to those rehabilitated and hand reared at SANCCOB. Initial analyses have shown that the chicks hand reared at SANCCOB have the same chance of survival during their few first years at sea compared to chicks raised by their parents in the wild. This finding is crucial for SANCCOB as it shows that the Chick Bolstering Project contributes to the bolstering of the wild population and that this conservation intervention plays a significant role in conserving this endangered species. Despite a slightly reduced survival probability in rehabilitated adults compared to breeding adults in the wild, the calculated rates are still within the range of what is observed in wild colonies. Adult African penguins rehabilitated at SANCCOB have often endured severe injuries, pollution or malnutrition and undergone extensive rehabilitation. Therefore, a slightly lower survival rate is expected, however initial studies confirm that the release of these penguins back into the wild also plays an important role in saving this species from extinction.
Marked birds can tell us a lot more than just their survival rates. We are now discovering that they penguins visit several colonies before eventually deciding on where to breed. The transponder data has also revealed that many penguins chose a different colony to breed that was different to where they hatched and fledged. This is most likely linked to breeding sites with good food availability rather than returning to their natal colony.
To obtain further data on body condition, ground readers at Stony Point colony in Betty’s Bay and St Croix Island in Algoa Bay have been linked to a weighbridge in a joint project with BirdLife South Africa. Through this African Penguin Monitoring System (APMS), we can monitor how long penguins stay at sea foraging and how much food their bring back to their chicks as the penguins walk over the weighbridge as they exit the colony and, on their return, thus getting an idea of the food availability around the breeding colony. Data from GPS tracking studies have shown how far penguins travel in a certain amount of time when foraging, assessing important foraging areas. This information is used to inform government on an adaptive management framework, and in particular, an ecosystem approach to fisheries.
The African Penguin Monitoring System (APMS) – a Collaboration with BirdLife South Africa
Lack of food has been identified as one of the key threats to African penguins. Using PIT ground readers linked to weighbridges at key colonies, we can monitor penguins’ body conditions and the amount of food they manage to deliver to their chicks. Linking this information to breeding success and foraging locations allows us to evaluate the effectiveness of Marine Protected Areas and Fisheries Closures as important conservation tools for the African penguin.
Live data from the APMS in four colonies can be found on Penguin Alert.
Seabird tracking
SANCCOB is actively involved in several tracking studies in collaboration with BirdLife South Africa and other partners, such as Nelson Mandela University, South Africa, and University of Exeter, UK. By deploying seabirds with miniature GPS loggers during the breeding season, valuable information is obtained on the areas they use for foraging, especially when provisioning food to their chicks at the nest sites. Tracking studies led by SANCCOB’s Research Manager, Dr Katta Ludynia, during her PhD in Namibia have assisted in designing and implementing Namibia’s first Marine Protected Area around the main seabird breeding colonies.
In South Africa, tracking studies have been instrumental to demonstrate the overlap of seabird foraging areas with commercial fisheries for sardine and anchovy, the main prey of endangered African penguins, Cape gannets and Cape cormorants. Key foraging areas for African penguins have been identified using internationally accepted methodologies based on tracking data and are being used to advocate for biologically meaningful fisheries closures (see McInnes et al. 2024).
Studies have shown that juvenile African penguins travel large distances after fledging (Sherley et al. 2017), including the chicks hand-reared at SANCCOB.
Unfortunately, young African penguins travel into areas that historically had a high food availability but are now depleted, thus falling into an ecological trap. SANCCOB regularly admits young penguins from these areas which are struggling to find food but many seabirds do not survive the first year at sea failing to eventually recruit into the breeding population.
In South Africa, tracking studies have been instrumental to demonstrate the overlap of seabird foraging areas with commercial fisheries for sardine and anchovy, the main prey of endangered African penguins, Cape gannets and Cape cormorants. BirdLife South Africa has mapped Marine Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (marine IBA’s) using over 10 years of tracking data for the African penguin. SANCCOB, BirdLife South Africa and WWF South Africa is advocating for closing these areas to pelagic fishing.
SANCCOB has also been involved in tracking juvenile African penguins on their first trip at sea after fledging. This study, conducted by Dr Richard Sherley from University of Exeter, UK, showed that SANCCOB’s hand-reared chicks fared as well as their wild counterparts, travelling long distances once they have fledged or been released. Unfortunately, young African penguins travel into areas that historically had a high food availability but are now depleted, thus falling into an ecological trap. Many seabirds do not survive the first year at sea failing to eventually recruit into the breeding population. Further studies are currently looking at important areas for penguins during the non-breeding and pre-breeding periods as well as at other seabird species like Cape gannets and Cape cormorants. These studies are led by BirdLife South Africa and the University of Exeter; SANCCOB provides support and works closely with these organisations to improve our knowledge on important bird areas requiring better protection.
RESEARCH PROJECTS
Acoustic studies
Several bioacoustics studies are currently taking place at SANCCOB, Cape Town. SANCCOB is collaborating with several international researchers to understand African penguin communication, both on land when partners greet each other at nest sites as well as at sea, when birds communicate for improved foraging as it has been shown that birds are more successful when foraging in groups. Researchers are looking at the development of African penguin chick calls relating to age, testing whether this can be used to assess chick condition in the wild and if recording penguin calls in the colonies can be a method to estimate the number of penguins present. The beauty is that his acoustic study can be performed without any disturbance to the penguins undergoing rehabilitation. It is envisaged in the future that we can obtain further information, including numbers of birds and body condition of adults and chicks from purely recording calls remotely in the colonies.
The study examining communication of penguins at sea is crucial to assess if noise pollution produced by increasing vessel traffic could be one of the reasons for the recent dramatic decline in penguin numbers on St Croix Island in Algoa Bay. Understanding this link will also be important for the assessment of future harbour developments and other marine industrial activities such as seismic surveys, oil and gas exploration and drilling.
Climate change
Climate change may affect or is already affecting all life stages of seabirds; heat waves and extreme weather events such as heat waves or storms cause breeding failures as eggs and chicks are abandoned and exposed to the elements. Changes in sea temperature and currents can lead to changes in food availability and distribution of prey, resulting in poor body condition of seabirds and in the long-term increased mortality. Storms and increased wave action can also lead to reduced breeding habitat caused by flooding or coastal erosion and become unviable habitat for breeding penguins.
SANCCOB is collaborating with the South African Nationals Parks (SANParks) at the Boulders Beach Penguin Colony (Table Mountain National Park) in a study assessing the impacts of climate change on breeding African penguins. Due to generous funding provided by WWF International’s Wildlife Adaptation Innovation Fund, a weather station has been installed and temperature and humidity sensors have been placed in several different nest types and different breeding habitats. By analysing breeding success, monitored by SANCCOB’s Penguin and Seabird Rangers in Simon’s Town in collaboration with City of Cape Town and SANParks, and linking breeding success/failure to recorded temperatures, the aim is to predict the conditions that cause penguins to abandon their eggs and chicks. This information will assist with improved management interventions, focussing on successful nest and habitat types (i.e., vegetation, natural nest or artificial nest boxes) as well as the development of an early warning system that can be adjusted to other seabird colonies.
Microplastics
Seabirds are known to ingest plastics whilst at sea, mistaking them for prey items and often leading to the birds’ death. Less visible than fishing gear entanglement or ingestion of larger pieces of plastic, microplastic ingestion has been shown to be a problem for many organisms however it is often not well documented nor understood. SANCCOB is working closely with the University of the Western Cape on a study assessing the prevalence of microplastics in coastal seabirds, such as gulls and terns. The presence of microplastics in fish is included in this study, including commercially purchased sardine fed to SANCCOB’s seabird patients.
MeerWissen
A multi-partner research project, SANCCOB collaborates with the University of Pretoria (UP), the University of the Western Cape (UWC), University of Namibia (UNAM) and the Freie Universitaet Berlin (FU Berlin) on a Penguin Health project, funded by the MeerWissen Initiative, African-German Knowledge for Ocean Knowledge. MeerWissen was initiated in 2018 by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and seeks to provide policymakers with the scientific information needed to take profound decisions for the effective management and conservation of Africa’s ocean and coasts.
The Penguin Health project consists of different work areas, and SANCCOB is directly involved in several of these. One key aspect of the project is the Avian Influenza project, linked to SANCCOB’s disease surveillance work. Both SANCCOB’s veterinary and research teams have been extensively involved in sampling for the study, including seabird colonies in South Africa and Namibia, in addition to the SANCCOB seabird hospitals. Led by a team of researchers at the University of the Western Cape, SANCCOB has collected samples for a study on the prevalence of toxins in penguins from various colonies to understand the different exposure, depending on the vicinity to human activities, such as cities and ports.
In order to be able to monitor African penguins and get more accurate numbers of breeding pairs but at the same time reducing the human disturbance caused by frequent or intense colony visits, SANCCOB is working together with a team from UP on a project to use drones to count African penguins. The MeerWissen project builds on the experience of colleagues from CapeNature, BirdLife South Africa and SANParks.
As part of the MeerWissen project, a stakeholder survey on African penguin conservation has been conducted by a student from the University of Pretoria; SANCCOB is co-supervising this study. Different groups, ranging from researchers who are directly working with African penguins to local residents and fisherman have been interviewed to gain an understanding of their current knowledge and their vision for African penguin conservation.
PopulaTION Trends
What is the Problem?
Population Trends
- The African penguin is in crisis – they were first classified by the IUCN as Endangered in 2010 and their population continues to decline (BirdLife International 2020)
- African penguins have been identified by the IUCN Penguin Specialist Group as one of three (of the global 18 species of penguin) that require urgent conservation intervention (Boersma et al. 2019)
- In 2019, a population assessment was conducted to evaluate their conservation status and assess whether the species met the threshold for Endangered. This assessment confirmed it had, with the global population declining by nearly 65% since 1989 (Sherley et al. 2020).
- This assessment was updated following the completion of the South African 2021 annual census. Over the last 30 years (three generations), the number of African penguins breeding in South Africa has declined by 73% from ~42,500 breeding pairs in 1991 to ~10,400 pairs in 2021 (Sherley et al. 2021). This represents a loss of almost a quarter of the remaining penguin population in the space of two years (Sherley et al. 2021).
- The global population is now estimated at 14,700 pairs in total; ~10,400 pairs in South Africa (based on 2021 breeding census) and ~4,300 pairs in Namibia (based on 2019 breeding census).
- Based on rates of population decline at the time, it was predicted that the population along the West Coast of South Africa could be functionally extinct by 2035 should no further actions be implemented. (Sherley et al. 2018).
- To provide a broader historical context of the extent of this population decline, while the total population at the turn of the 20th century is not known, it is estimated that there could have been as many as 1.5million to 3million individuals throughout the species range, with an estimate of 0.3 million pairs at Dassen Island (Crawford et al. 2007; Frost et al. 1976; Shannon and Crawford 1999). By 1956, only an estimated 0.3 million individuals remained (Crawford et al. 2007).
- Essentially, the African penguin has lost nearly 97% of its population. Put another way, it is at less than 3% of its historical levels in the wild.
Colony Trends
- While the overall population trends are alarming, it is also important to consider what is taking place at individual colonies. African penguins are colonial nesting birds, and this breeding behaviour provides a range of benefits.
- Five South African colonies have become extinct since 2005 (a rate of loss of one colony every three years (DFFE unpubl. Data).
- In 2004, three of the South African colonies had more than 5,000 breeding pairs, with Dassen Island holding about 25,000 pairs; St Croix Island approximately 10,000 pairs and Robben Island nearly 8,000 pairs (DFFE, unpubl. data).
- All the large colonies have experienced substantial decreases with none of the remaining colonies having more than 5,000 pairs (DFFE unpubl. Data).
- Smaller colonies have a higher risk of going extinct than larger ones (Makhado et al. 2021).
- This is because as colonies get smaller, they become more susceptible to Allele effects, or inverse density dependence, reducing their chances of recovery and increasing their likelihood of extinction (Makhado et al. 2021).
- As the small breeding groups at breeding colonies get smaller, more birds nest near colony edges, where eggs and chicks are at greater risk to predation (e.g. Cordes et al. 1999).
- Declining penguin numbers at colonies may reduce information acquisition that facilitates food-finding (e.g. Wakefield et al. 2013).
What went Wrong?
- The historical practice of egg collection in the 1800s and 1900s had a significant impact on recruitment to the African penguin population during the early 20th century (Shannon and Crawford 1999).
- African penguins used to primarily make nests in guano burrows. However, the large-scale collection of guano from seabird breeding colonies not only disturbed breeding penguins, but also destroyed this breeding habitat, causing penguins to breed in sup-optimal breeding habitats (Frost et al. 1976b, Wilson and Wilson 1989, Lei et al. 2014).
- Extreme weather events, exacerbated by climate change can cause flooding from rain or storm surges, which results in egg and chick loss. Extreme heat events can lead to nest abandonment by adults, where eggs and chicks can be lost to predation. Chicks can also die from hypo and hyperthermia.
- Penguins are oiled through large scale catastrophic events, chronic oiling and ship-to-ship bunkering (transfer of fuel at sea). While oiled African penguins can be successfully rescued, rehabilitated and released, some penguins suffer long-term physiological damage as a result of ingesting oil, which has an impact on their survival and breeding performance (Wolfaardt 2009, 2008, Barham et al. 2007).
- Penguins are exposed to various disturbances from people such as ill-behaved tourists and are killed by cars particularly at parking lots at mainland colonies (SANParks, CapeNature, City of Cape Town unpubl. data).
- Adult, juvenile and fledgling African penguins are predated on at sea by Cape fur seals (Makhado 2009, Makhado et al. 2013, Weller et al. 2016), and Kelp gulls predate unguarded eggs and small chicks. Predation by caracal, leopard and mongoose has been observed at mainland colonies (e.g. Underhill et al. 2006, Vanstreels et al. unpublished data, CCT, SANParks and CN, unpublished data). Predation by feral cats and domestic dogs has also been observed at some colonies (Weller et al. 2014, 2016)
- While mortality in the wild from disease had not been substantial thus far, recently Avian Influenza has caused mortality of over 300 African penguins in Namibia and African penguins in South Africa have been affected by two different outbreaks in the last 3 years (Khomenko et al. 2018, Molini et al. 2019).
- Entanglement in marine pollution such as fishing line also cause mortalities.
- Recently, concern has been raised as to the impact of noise from boat traffic on African penguins
- The various colonies experience these threats in different frequencies and intensities. Lack of sufficient food is however considered as the main driver of the current decline (BirdLife International 2020). This has been attributed to food shortages caused by declining fish stocks; shifts in the distribution of prey species and competition with commercial purse seine fisheries for food (e.g. Crawford et al. 2011, 2018).
- African penguins feed on small pelagic fish, primarily sardine and anchovy, and the abundance of these fish has been shown to impact their breeding success (Crawford et al. 2006a, Sherley et al. 2013), adult survival (Sherley et al. 2013, Robinson et al. 2015) and juvenile survival (Weller et al. 2016).
- Furthermore, it has been suggested that the biomass of these stocks may often be too low off South Africa’s west coast to maintain population equilibrium (Weller et al. 2014, 2016). It is during these times of low biomass levels that competition between penguins and fisheries may have greater impact.
- Sherley et al. (2017), found evidence of a marine ecological trap. Dispersing juvenile African penguins were shown to travel large distances to areas of low sea surface temperatures and high chlorophyll-a. These areas now have depleted forage fish stocks due to climate change and industrial fishing and so are no longer reliable indicators of fish availability.
WHAT IS BEING DONE?
In mitigating the various threats at the colonies, the following actions are taking place, led by the colony Managing Authorities and in collaboration with their conservation partners:
- Poor breeding habitat: providing increased shade by vegetating breeding colonies; provision of artificial nest boxes and evaluating success of nest boxes.
- Extreme climatic events: shade provision; digging culverts to divert water to prevent flooding; placing sand bags to prevent flooding from storm surges; development of early warning systems (SANParks Climate change team with SANCCOB support at Boulders).
- Oiling: improving response times and activities, and rehabilitation techniques; lobbying against additional ship-to-ship bunkering licences; rescuing oiled birds and their rehabilitation and release back to the wild.
- Predation: removal of individual damage causing animals.
- Disease: rescuing diseased birds, rehabilitation and release; continuous disease surveillance in colonies.
- Poor food availability: rescuing starving penguins, rehabilitation and release; the establishment of an African penguin colony at De Hoop Nature Reserve that aims to provide a safe breeding area closer to an important food area.
- Human disturbance is minimised at the colonies.
- Penguin Rangers: Any oiled, injured, ill or abandoned penguins that our rangers or the managing authorities’ rangers identify and rescue are transported to SANCCOB for veterinary intervention and rehabilitation until release criteria are met. SANCCOB funds and deploys additional rangers to some of the African penguin breeding colonies to provide additional capacity to the Managing Authorities.
What still needs to be done to prevent penguin mortality and encourage population recovery?
Everything that can be done on land to reduce mortality and improve breeding success is being done by Managing Authorities and their conservation partners, and these actions need to continue within an adaptive management framework. There are still some aspects that require additional attention in order to reduce the African penguin population decline and promote the species’ recovery. One of these is improving food availability.
A thirteen year project led by the South African government aims to investigate the benefit to breeding African penguins and their chicks by closing areas around islands to fishing. While results are not uniform across colonies, analyses indicate that there is a biologically meaningful benefit to these fishing closures, particularly with respect to chick survival and chick condition (parameters important to the demographic process), as well as maximum foraging distances travelled.
However, these results are not supported by some, and the South African government is working extremely hard to resolve this issue and find a way forward through a process led by Minister Creecy, who is the Minister of Forestry and Fisheries and Environmental Affairs in the South Africa.
All African penguins undergo a catastrophic annual moult; they need to replace all their feathers in order to maintain their waterproofing. During this moult, they are land-bound for ~21 days and do not eat. Prior to this moult fast, they have to acquire sufficient fat reserves in order to survive and this requires a 4-5 week period of foraging at sea to consume enough food to survive their moult. Subsequent to the fast, they return to sea to regain their body condition. The moult phase is thus energetically expensive and is one of the most sensitive times of the penguin’s life cycle. Ensuring penguins have enough food to survive this moult is critical and BirdLife South Africa is leading a research programme to determine important feeding areas for pre- and post-moulting African penguins.
Once the fledging African penguins leave their colony, they remain at sea for 18-24 months before returning to moult into their adult plumage. Research has shown that these dispersing penguins travel to areas that have poor food resources, impacting their survival. Juvenile survival is thus low in these populations.
Decisions to ensure sufficient food for African penguins (in fact all top predators in the Benguela Upwelling Ecosystem) thus need to take place at spatial and temporal scales that take their full life cycle into consideration.
Another threat that needs attention is addressing and mitigating the threat that ship-to-ship bunkering, and other shipping activities, have on African penguins.
Image of Halifax, courtesy of Thomas P. Peschak_National Geographic
WHAT IS THE IMPACT OF AFRICAN PENGUINS GOING EXTINCT?
What still needs to be done to prevent penguin mortality and encourage population recovery?
Ecosystem Importance
- African penguins transfer large amounts of nutrients from the ocean to their colonies, influencing the functioning of the island/colony ecosystem and adjacent marine areas.
- Their guano is washed into the sea, promoting algal growth, influencing the growth of intertidal communities which support shorebirds and other marine invertebrates.
- They improve access to food for other species, eg herding schools of fish upwards where other birds can deed on them (McInnes et al. 2017).
Cultural Importance
- The African penguin is Africa’s only penguin species, and one of 18 global penguin species.
- They are sentinels of the ocean (Boersma 2008) and the African penguin is thus a symbol South Africa’s marine ecosystem and its health.
Economic Importance
- The African penguin plays a significant role in South Africa’s ecotourism offering
- In the Western Cape, there are tourist attractions at the Simon’s Town colony, which includes Boulders in Table Mountain National Park, and the Stony Point colony in Betty’s Bay.
- Economic benefits associated with these land-based colonies include income generated though entrance fees, job provision at the colonies as well as other benefits to surrounding areas (e.g. restaurants, accommodation, transport services).
- The total expenditure associated with the Simon’s Town colony is estimated at approximately R311 million per annum and generates 885 jobs (van Zyl and Kinghorn 2018). The projected future income from tourism at the Simon’s Town colony over the next 30 years was estimated at approximately R6.8 billion (pre-Covid-19 figures).
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Your Time
Participate in beach clean-ups
Recycle at home
Identify reputable conservation organisations and keep up to date with their information shared
Your Decisions
Eat right
Look at the WWF SASSI list (sardine is orange)
Is the meat you eat fed on wild caught anchovy?
Eat local and in season fish
Reduce your meat (including fish) consumption
Shop better
Reduce single use plastic use
Not using plastic bags
Using less or no plastic packaging
Reduce your carbon footprint
Walk or cycle where possible
Your Voice
Ask your policy makers key questions and hold them to account
Engage in the conversation and share #SaveTheAfricanPenguin updates on your social media platforms
Your Money
Identify reputable organisations involved in penguin conservation and support them through:
Once-off or monthly donations
Specific project giving
Leaving a legacy