Department of Conservation and Wellington Zoo staff attempted to release a rare Adélie penguin that washed up at Petone last month back into the wild today, but the Antarctic bird had other plans.
The penguin was taken to the Ōrongorongo River east of Wellington to a release point so it could begin its 30-day journey back to Antarctica.
Wellington Zoo senior veterinarian Kirsten Anderson said the penguin unfortunately chose not to go into the ocean.
“She wandered back up the beach and we just gave her plenty of space, plenty of time, but monitoring her over the last kind of 20 minutes or so, it’s clear that she’s starting to get hot.”
The reluctant bird washed up in Petone last month and has been recuperating at Wellington Zoo. (Source: 1News)
The zoo had been looking after the penguin since it was found on Lower Hutt’s Petone Beach last month.
In a post to its Instagram page, Wellington Zoo said she was spotted at an off-leash dog walking area of the beach where she was at “significant risk from curious or excitable pets”.
“Luckily, members of the community were eager to help [the Department of Conservation] protect her and local dog owners leashed their dogs and kept them away.”
The veterinary team at the zoo’s animal hospital The Nest Te Kōhanga gave the penguin a thorough health check upon her arrival.
This included X-rays, blood work and a gastroscopy to assess her condition and make sure she was free of illness.
Adélie penguins are a rare sight in New Zealand, with their usual habitat being Antarctica and some sub-Antarctic islands.
“They’re not really evolved for this really warm weather that we’re experiencing today,” Anderson said.
The team decided for the penguin’s safety, as it began to overheat at today’s release attempt, that it would be put back into the crate and one option could be to transport her to Antarctica.
Anderson said there were some trips going down to the icy continent for various research projects.
“We are hoping to see if we can get her to tag along on one of those.”