Conservationists say efforts to protect SA’s endangered penguin population are far from over
BirdLife South Africa and SANCCOB have pushed for stronger legal protections, leading to the creation of new no-fishing zones around six key penguin colonies.
FILE: African Penguins stand on the beach at the Boulders penguin colony, which is a popular tourist destination, in Simon's Town, near in Cape Town, on 1 November 2024. Picture: RODGER BOSCH/AFP
JOHANNESBURG - Although World Penguin Day has passed, conservationists said efforts to protect South Africa’s endangered penguin population are far from over.
BirdLife South Africa and SANCCOB (Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds) have pushed for stronger legal protections, leading to the creation of new no-fishing zones around six key penguin colonies.
These include Dassen Island, Robben Island, Stony Point, Dyer Island, St Croix Island, and Bird Island, which together are home to 76% of the country’s African penguin population.
Spokesperson for the Two Oceans Aquarium Shanté Rutgers said ongoing action is needed to preserve and protect the African penguins, which are only found on the continent’s coast.
“Initiatives from the aquarium to oneself is to just be accountable for what you're doing. As a person, as a human being, we have a major effect on the environment and so everything that we do will impact what is happening out in the wild.”