Stony Point Penguins

My Scholarship entry - Unlikely place of hope for penguins

SOUTH AFRICA | Monday, 24 November 2014 | Views [275] | View Larger Image

A sturdy boardwalk weaves its way through the penguin colony, welcoming tourists to experience a day in the life of the African Penguin up close and personal, without causing damage to the sensitive area. The protection of this colony is vital because Stony Point is one of a few successful breeding colonies for this species, which has experienced a 97% drop in global population numbers over the last 80 years.

Stony Point is fringed by the residential area of the coastal town of Betty’s Bay, creating an encouraging if incongruous impression of wildlife and humans co-existing in apparent harmony. Volunteers helped set up numerous artificial nest boxes around the site a decade ago, which has helped to substantially boost numbers at this colony, and the suburban backdrop probably restricts access of numerous terrestrial predators to the penguins.

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This ramshackle fence at Stony Point seems to symbolize the often unclear interface between humans and wildlife, as the areas available for wildlife outside of human habitation diminish. The co-existence of penguins and humans at Stony Point is not without problems, but fortunately there are people who always search for solutions.

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Stony Point Penguins

My Scholarship entry - Unlikely place of hope for penguins

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