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From our scientist, Hiltrun Ratz, PhD
scientist@penguins.org.nz 
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These two have also started to wander - and in the right direction. They were incubated and hatched in Harvey Hotel but Holly and her mate are met by them very near the foreshore now - these are definitely two chicks that are not going to get lost on the way to the beach!  These two were incubated and hatched in the Hartfiel family box by Gustl and his mate but they have wandered off into the forest where it is nice a cool on sunny days. They are getting so big - and start looking like real penguins - not just fluff balls.  They grew up in the Zak McCall box and were not doing quite as well as they ought so we thought the parents might be struggling a wee bit and we can't have that. So they are now enjoying salmon twice a day and extra care so that they can be released nice and fat when they reach their 106 days.
This recently sponsored yellow-eyed penguin chick is being raised by Poppy and her mate and is often found down this wee vegetation tunnel where is can peek out at passers-by and feel safe.  With her mate Stewie Junior she raised a couple of gorgeous chicks this season starting out in Uncle Chang's box. Here in the middle of the day she is delivering the first meal of the day and Stewie will be back later with more. Notice the red-billed gull in the background - it has worked out that there may be scraps about when feeding is happening - and some gulls even try to interrupt the feeding so the penguins spill food. Cheeky beggars!  This chick took its time to leave the nest box and has finally found a good spot to hang out while waiting for dad Holger and mum Danni. They have done a superb job with this chick this season.  This chick still has a bit of down on it as it is a bit younger than some of the other chicks in the colony. It is also a singleton - no sibling - and we have observed that often a parent is at home with single chicks. It's a good sign that the parents are not struggling with food supply. But two chicks still need twice as much food, so the twins are usually home alone.  These two chicks grew up in Claire Shrewbridge's box and in the middle of the day a parent was at home. We could hear them from some distance as the chicks were still begging for food. They definitely look like they are heavier than their parent - so it's a job well done!  These two were up first for their final weigh-in at 90 days old that includes the head measurement - which lets us guess fairly accurately - their sex. One of them was 6.7kg with a head of 140mm - probably a male; and the other weighed 6.0kg with a head of 136mm - probably a girl. They have about two weeks left and then it will be off on the big adventure in the big blue. Jackson and his mate have made a fab job of these two as evidenced by their weights: that's heavy!  This chick was not thriving with its parents and so it was brought into rehab. It has now learnt to eat out of the hand and is putting on weight. Still one of our younger ones but the adult feathers are slowing growing.  |
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