World Penguin Day 2022 - Shining the spotlight on our endangered feathered friends May 3rd, 2022
World Penguin Day 2022 - Shining the spotlight on our endangered feathered friends
The Overberg is home to five CapeNature Reserves, where three of the protected areas are coastal. Dyer Island, an offshore island to the Walker Bay Complex, and Stoney Point Penguin Colony situated in Kogelberg Nature Reserve, serves as critical habitats to seabirds such as the African Penguin (Spheniscus dermersus).WCapeNature often collaborates with seabird conservation entities such as the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB) and the African Penguin & Seabird Sanctuary (APSS), to combat the decline of seabird populations. This is done through the rescue, rehabilitation, and release of ill, injured, abandoned, and oiled seabirds. The African Penguin is 1 of approximately 18 penguin species worldwide and is listed as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Conservation (IUCN) list. April 25th marks World Penguin Day, an environmental calendar day that aims to educate the public on the habitat of penguins andtheir role in the ecosystem. The day alsohighlights threats that have contributed to the drastic reduction in penguin species numbers.
The pescatarian (fish-eating) birds are generally fast divers, unable to fly due to their dense skeletal frame and can reduce excess salt in their bodies through sneezing, aided by glands below their eye. The black and white feathers serve as body coverage which enables thermoregulation and countershading camouflage when in groups. While gloss on the feathers ensures waterproofing and serves as protection against harsh wind action. In conversation with DICT Conservation Manager, Trudi Malan, supported the well documented history of the African Penguin colony, which was established on Dyer Island in 1979 and is currently recorded to have 1010 breeding pairs to date. Neighboring Dyer Island is Stony Point, a protected area that houses 1610 breeding pairs, a colony that established in 1982 and its population is believed to be influenced by the movement patterns of the colony at Dyer (Stoney Point booklet).
African penguins feed on shoal fish, thus restricting their preferred habitat to coastal areas and offshore islands, making them vulnerable prey to predators such seals. The scarcity of fish stock have negatively contributed to the declining population of Jackass Penguins, a name earned from their donkey-like call and the only penguin species found in Africa. Guano, together with egg collection, pollution, raising sea levels due to climate change and avian diseases, are just some of the threats that penguins face. In October 2021 the High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza (HPAI) broke out and was contained 4 months later. The influenza virus was recorded to mainly affect the Cape Cormorant (Phalacrocorax capensis) and primarily the colony based at Dyer Island. Although a low health risk to humans, in rare cases where people deal with a suspected/infected birds, they are encouraged to wear disinfected clothing that includes safely disposable masks, gloves and an apron to avoid becoming a vector for the virus.
For more information on conservation work done by CapeNature visit www.capenature.co.za and follow the entity on official social media including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
ABOUT CapeNature
CapeNature is a public institution mandated to promote and ensure biodiversity conservation within the Western Cape. The entity manages most of the mountain catchments and reserves that supply ecosystem services to the citizens of the Western Cape. This requires good scientific data, a sound understanding of fynbos ecology and commitment to the principles of integrated biodiversity management and planning. Most of this work is in remote areas out of the public eye but has a direct bearing on the quality of life of millions of people in the province.