The Human Impact on African Penguins Why we need to change our actions before it’s too late

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WORDS: Emily Lightwood

For most people, a visit to the Cape Town area is considered incomplete if you don’t take the time to visit Boulders Beach, where you’ll find a colony of curious African penguins. It’s an unforgettable experience being in such proximity to this wild animal. Their feisty personalities make them pretty unique. However, this whole species is under threat…

… and it’s mostly thanks to humans.

 The decline of the penguin

Permanent residents of the SANCCOB centre in Cape Town- these birds cannot be released as they can’t survive in the wild due to injuries and amputations.

For the last century, the population of African Penguins has been declining. In the 1920s, the population of African penguins was approximately 5 million. Fast-forward just under one hundred years, and the number has plummeted to just 50,000 penguins in the wild, with just over 21,000 breeding pairs. After I found this out, I wanted to visit the SANCCOB (Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds) centre in Cape Town to find out exactly why the number has diminished so rapidly, and what they are trying to do to help stop the population from getting even smaller.

When did it all start?

According to Dr. Katta Ludynia, SANCCOB’s research manager, the initial drop in penguin numbers seeing that people used to take the African penguins’ eggs. People would eat the eggs and having an egg collection also used to be popular. As a result of these actions, fewer chicks have been born into the population. Thankfully, it is now illegal to possess penguin eggs, which has eliminated one of the threats to African penguins. To try and help increase the number of chicks that successfully make it to adulthood, SANCCOB takes the eggs out of unsafe areas and incubate them at the centre. The chicks are then given to penguins who act as ‘foster’ parents. To give the penguins the best chance of being successfully reintroduced into the wild, the staff do not handle the birds unless absolutely necessary. According to Ronnis Daniels, the public relations officer at SANCCOB:

“The chicks who are introduced to the colony after being hand-reared by the SANCCOB staff are the healthiest of all the birds that are eventually released into the wild”

An African penguin protecting its eggs in the nest, which is made of its guano.

In addition to stealing eggs, humans have taken the guano (faeces) from the penguins to use as fertiliser for crops and plants. Although this is useful to produce food for both South Africa and for international export, penguins also have a use for their guano.  The lack of it has multiple effects on the penguins and their environment. It’s used to line their nests, providing shelter for them and their eggs.  Without this, the penguins are left with no option but to build their nests somewhere else, which puts the penguins and their eggs in imminent danger. At Boulders Beach there have been cases where the penguins have settled too close to the water’s edge and are at risk of being washed away, and other cases where penguins have settled in local residents’ gardens and are predated by cats and dogs. Dr. Katta Ludynia also told me that the increase of traffic around Simon’s Town (where the Boulders Beach colony of penguins are) means that some penguins are killed on the road, which previously didn’t happen. Nests are regularly monitored by the team, and as previously mentioned, eggs are rescued from unsafe places to ensure the best chances of survival for the future chick.

Devastating effects of oil spills

SANCCOB was set up in 1968 after a major oil spill off Cape Town, which leaked 4000 tonnes of oil into the ocean. Today it is a non-profit organisation which relies on volunteers, donations and fundraising to help out injured and ill seabirds.

These spills have had a detrimental effect on penguins, and are most frequently caused by bunker to bunker refueling, in which oil often ends up overflowing into the ocean. For the penguins, there is no escape; the oil infiltrates their feathers, then pruning of the feathers causes ingestion of oil, which can severely damage their internal organs. In the event of a spill, the oiled birds are taken into the SANCCOB shelter and are washed, dried and sterilised. Regular checks are also done to make sure their feathers are being re-proofed. Nowadays there are procedures to prevent oil spills, however, this doesn’t mean the problem has gone away.  At the beginning of July, there was an oil spill in the Eastern Cape, in which 74 African penguins were affected. SANCCOB’s work is ensuring that more of the birds survive the horrendous ordeal ensuring that their habitat is restored to as close to the original state as possible, so that release can happen as soon as the birds are fit enough.

Penguins affected by an oil spill

Dr. Katta Ludynia, SANCCOB’s research manager, told me:

“SANCCOB helped 20,000 birds during the Treasure Oil spill of 2000, and the number that currently come into the shelter is relatively low in comparison, but the shelters are ready for high numbers of birds just in case a large oil spill happens again”

Not only do oil spills hurt penguins, but they also contaminate the fish and marine life, which is consumed by humans as well as penguins.

The war against plastic

In many parts of the world, the war against plastic is firmly underway. Unfortunately, it has taken us until now to realise that many animals are being affected by plastic. And penguins are no exception, being affected by both entanglement and ingestion of plastic. Sadly, it is incredibly difficult for the general public to identify whether a bird has eaten plastic until it’s too late. Even at the SANCCOB centre with the expert staff and volunteers, it is virtually impossible to tell that a bird has eaten plastic because it doesn’t show up on X-rays. Often, it is only after a post-mortem on a penguin that plastic is identified as a cause of death. The worst thing about the plastic crisis is that it is completely avoidable, as nowadays there are plenty of plastic-free products and alternatives which work just as well. The concern with plastic is that it’s a global issue, which stretches far beyond African penguins. The best way to solve this problem for penguins is simply to refrain from using single-use plastic.

The penguins being fed by the volunteers at the SANCCOB centre

Overfishing: The biggest culprit

The biggest problem facing African penguins currently is overfishing. Depleting the stocks of sardines and anchovies in the water surrounding them means that the penguins have to swim further for food. Not only does this exhaust them, it also increases the number of predators that could hunt them whilst they look for food. Predation is a natural factor for the killing of penguins, as animals such as seals do eat them, however the problem of overfishing has now become so severe that there have been occasions where penguins have been attacked at sea by seals and their stomachs have been sliced open to get the fish that the penguin has just consumed. This has happened on four separate occasions, as said by Ronnis at SANCCOB. If penguins have chicks back on the shore and are killed whilst out at sea, their chicks will also have a high chance of dying of starvation back on the shore. Ludynia tells me:

“Fishing quotas must be controlled in order to be able to ensure there is enough food for the penguins, and fishing should be prohibited around breeding colonies during the breeding season and it should be limited to certain areas that are known to be used by the penguins to fatten up during the non-breeding season. Studies have shown that birds travel less far when there is sufficient food around, especially in years of fishing closures and good food availability”

Penguins are the most commonly rescued bird at SANCCOB, because their food supplies have been affected more severely than other birds. African penguins off the coast of Namibia have been so severely affected by the draining of sardine stocks that they have been forced to change their diet. The research manager for SANCCOB has stated to me that these penguins now eat Bearded Goby which is nowhere near as nutritious as sardines and anchovy, and as a result, the birds struggle to survive on this low-quality fish.

So, what makes the species worth saving?

African penguins are predators of organisms lower down in the food chain, which is necessary for the ecosystem to continue to survive. One example given by Dr. Katta Ludynia is the African penguin guano is a rich fertiliser, making areas around breeding colonies fertile enough to support kelp forests and organisms living in them, like Cape rock lobster and abalone, which have high commercial value. Furthermore, the African penguin is incredibly popular with tourists in Cape Town, and the loss of the species and others with the same touristic attraction would be detrimental for the economy of South Africa.

What can you do to help?

Firstly, stop using plastic. There are so many plastic-free alternatives and multi-use items, and it’s the small changes that make a big difference. Take a long-lasting bag with you when you’re shopping, don’t drink from plastic straws, or try investing in a reusable water bottle. Also, think a bit more about what you eat. SASSI (the Southern African Sustainable Seafood Initiative) aims to improve the situation with the local seafood industry by advising people on what fish to avoid buying and eating, so the population has a chance to increase again. Zebrafish, for example, are on SASSI’s red list (meaning they are at a critically low level in the ocean). They are a no-sale fish, so it’s illegal to buy or sell the fish. To find out more about SASSI, follow the link: http://wwfsassi.co.za/how-sassi-helps/

If you would like to find out more about African penguins and SANCCOB, or if you would like to donate, then visit https://sanccob.co.za.

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