A local animal welfare organisation recently visited the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB) Seabird Rehabilitation Centre in Cape Town, where they learned about the conservation of the African penguin.
Stellenbosch University’s Promotion of Animal Welfare (PAW) society’s visit to the centre, on 29 May, served as an educational project for the 24 PAW members who participated, and formed part of a broader awareness campaign around the plight of the African penguin, said Tiyana Ramchunder, chairperson of PAW.
PAW aims to help animals in need through education, student volunteer work and fundraising, according to Ramchunder.
“The penguin colony depreciation rate is extremely high, and at SANCCOB they told us that in 15 to 20 years, the African penguin will be extinct,” said Ramchunder.
The PAW members spent their time at SANCCOB learning about penguins and their endangered status, as well as observing the feeding and egg-incubation processes, according to Matthew Coltman, a PAW member, and one of the organisers of the visit.
A group of African penguins gather at the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds facility in Cape Town. PHOTO: Giuseppe Rajkumar Guerandi
“[Penguin] parents will leave nests in search of food, and because of overfishing, they can’t find food. If the parents leave for too long, the temperature drops and the egg isn’t viable anymore,” said Ramchunder.
The African penguin population has dropped by almost 65% since 1989, from roughly 100 000 to fewer than 40 000 in the world, according to a SANCCOB report from 2019.
A few African penguins being cared for at Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds Seabird Rehabilitation Centre, with identifying tags visible on their flippers. PHOTO: Giuseppe Rajkumar Guerandi
“The biggest threat [to the African penguin] is the lack of fish, such as sardines and anchovies,” said Ronnis Daniels, resource development manager at SANCCOB.
SANCCOB cares for coastal birds through various programmes, which include a chick-rearing unit and a rehabilitation facility for injured wild birds, according to Daniels.
“It reminds you of the common purpose of humanity, especially when you are looking out for animals. They have no advocates to speak on their behalf,” said Ramchunder on SANCCOB’s efforts.
Daniels told MatieMedia that support for SANCCOB has been extremely good in the Western Cape, with the number of volunteers often exceeding that of staff members on any given day. A variety of internship programmes are available for both local and international volunteers, without any prior qualifications needed, added Daniels.
According to Ronnis Daniels, resource development manager at SANCCOB, the organisation relies on volunteers and interns for all operational tasks, including cleaning, bird-feeding and bird-training in the intensive care unit. PHOTO: Giuseppe Rajkumar Guerandi