Yellow-eyed Penguin (Megadyptes antipodes), South Island, New Zealand, by Reinhard Hölzl
A Penguin Awareness Day Special
Yellow-eyed Penguins
New Zealand is home to one of the rarest and most distinct penguins, a slender-billed species with a yellow band around its eyes that the indigenous Maori named hoiho. Meet the Yellow-eyed penguin, a shy bird with an estimated global population of under 5,000 individuals
Unlike most penguin species, yellow-eyed penguins don’t nest in colonies. Females lay two eggs at solitary inland sites. Both parents take turns at the nest with the eggs during incubation and they switch off guarding and feeding newly hatched chicks until they fledge.
Yellow-eyed Penguin or Hoiho, South Island, New Zealand, by Reinhard Hölzl
Penguin Awareness
The more we learn about our slow waddling flightless friends, the more we can understand and help them. Half of extant penguin species are listed as vulnerable or endangered. Many experts consider these lovable birds to be an indicator of the overall health of our planet, with much of their success in the wild linked to clean water and a stable climate.
Following are links to the websites of organizations that are dedicated to penguin research and conservation. If you have time, visit their sites to see what they do.
Anyone can join the effort and work for a brighter future. For penguins and all who inhabit planet Earth.
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Nature and the Environment was formed by BioTriad Environmental, Inc. to provide entertaining and informative media while keeping the wonders of nature in the public eye.
