RELEASED PENGUIN KILLED

By Steven Jeggels

One of the penguins which had been released by the penguin rehabilitation centre in Jeffreys Bay was killed by a dog last week while the dog’s owner callously looked on without even trying to control his dog.

"Kerry-K" who was nursed back to health after suffering from starvation were one of 12 penguins released three weeks ago. The incident, which happened on a beach in Jeffreys Bay, was witnessed by a trucker who took time out for a walk on the beach. According to him he was sitting on the beach when he noticed a man and a dog emerge from a car in the parking lot. "One minute I was sitting watching the penguin and the next minute I saw the dog kill it", he said.

According to the witness the man unleashed his dog on the beach and it ran straight to the penguin. Seeing the approaching dog the penguin tried to escape into the ocean but to no avail. Before reaching the water’s edge the dog grabbed it from behind and killed it instantly. There was no attempt on the part of the owner to try and stop it. After killing the penguin the dog ran straight back to his owner, who put him back on lead and left the beach without removing the dead penguin.

"By the time I realised what had happened, the man and his dog had already left the beach. After the incident I took the dead penguin to the rehabilitation centre in the Seekoei Nature Reserve", he says. Conservation officials took it to a local vet for an autopsy which revealed haemor-rhage to organs and internal bleeding. According to the vet, dr Hartley, the attack was so severe that the penguin’s spine was crushed which killed it instantly.

Chrystal Hartley of the penguin rehabilitation centre says, "Penguins brought to us are exhausted, sick or injured and in need of a safe place to recuperate. They receive treatment for injuries and diseases and rehabilitated at the centre until they are strong enough to be released back into the ocean.

It is heartbreaking to have one of these penguins die becuase an irresponsible person did not attempt to control his dog. This particular bird was one we nursed back to health so that it could have a chance of finding a renewed life in the ocean. It is usually the dogs that wonder the beach unattended that cause problems. In this case the owner was with the dog and I find it extremely strange that he did absolutely nothing to prevent the killing. It would appear that he is either totally ignorant or totally lacking in compassion for wild creatures, probably both.

Photograph by Steven Jeggels

Apart from dogs killing penguins the major survival problem facing them today is that of oil pollution, not only major oil spills, but the insidious and ongoing problem of ships washing out their tanks at sea. Dwindling fish resources is another problem. Breeding adult penguins are unable to provide sustenance for their chicks, and the poor ability of underweight chicks to hunt successfully is compounded by the lack of fish. Plastic pollution, another problem, results in starving penguins eating plastic which they cannot digest, and septicaemia sets in.

The centre takes penguins from the Kouga area and down the coast as far as Mossel Bay.