SANCCOB needs your help to build a new African penguin chick-rearing unit

Sara-Jayne Makwala King spoke to SANCCOB’s Head of Conservation, Nicky Stander.

Listen to their conversation in the audio clip below.

The Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB) is calling on the public to help it reach a target of R250,000 to build a new and improved African penguin chick-rearing unit.

"The existing unit has served us quite well and we've been raising hundreds of penguin chicks and hatching penguin eggs - these are rescued from the penguin colonies." 

- Nicky Stander, Head of Conservation - SANCCOB

"We have been doing very well over the years but we're simply running out of space and that's sort of due to the increased amount of eggs that are being rescued over the years, increased amounts of chicks that need to come in, so we identified that we had to sort of expand this unit." 

- Nicky Stander, Head of Conservation - SANCCOB

SANCCOB is said to be the only organisation in the world that can incubate, hatch and hand-rear rescued African penguin eggs and chicks for release into the wild.

For more information on fundraising efforts, visit www.sanccob.co.za 

The African penguin has lost 97% of its population over the last 100 years.

Scientists predict that the species could face extinction by 2035.

"That is something we are very fearful of."

- Nicky Stander, Head of Conservation - SANCCOB

"It's currently listed as endangered but there's a process underway this year to uplift them to critically endangered which of course is one step away from being extinct in the wild." 

- Nicky Stander, Head of Conservation - SANCCOB

There are reportedly only 8,300 breeding pairs left in the wild in South Africa.

One of the main reasons for the decline in the African penguin population is the lack of food due to there being direct competition between the penguins and commercial fisheries.

Scroll up to listen to the full interview.