Sunday 5th March 2023

The moulted tawaki are stunning

​Hello friends and family
The penguins are coming home to moult thick and fast. We check their weights and if they are light, we bring them in to give support during the moult. Step one is to find them. A penguin that does not want to be found is quite likely to moult undisturbed as we do not check every possible place. 

Jan watching the tawaki orient themselves

​The ones that want help, sit on our regular path and wait for us. They are too easy to catch. The worst case was a premoult female weighing only 4.4 kgs. She was on the path here but had her nest at Katiki Beach. She has settled well.
The biggest penguin was a breeding male, on a rock, weighing around 8 kgs. The problem was his chick was up the hill waiting for food. We brought in the last 3 chicks to top up and then release.

the little penguin wasted no time in getting back into the water

​By the end of rounds on Thursday, we had 22 YEPs in care, plus a little penguin and the erect crested. Pre-moult penguins are usually easy to manage in care as their hunger outweighs their fear, and they learn quickly to feed from the hand. This makes the whole job easier. The chicks, on the other hand, are not fledging because they have sore throats. Once that is cleared up, they too feed from the hand and feeding time becomes a pleasure, not a stress.

the erect crested penguin being released

Hiltrun came up on Friday and we released the erect and the little penguin. She also took the Akaroa penguin down to Penguin Place for swimming as they have an in-ground pool.
Yesterday it rained so I preserved apples.
Have a great week!
Rosalie