Royal Penguin Fights for His Life

In a rare occurrence a Royal Penguin has made his way to New Zealand, but now he is in critical condition at a Wellington zoo.

Published

3 months ago

Categories

Science

Topics

Wildlife, Science

Places

New Zealand

Transcript

The prognosis is grim for this young Royal Penguin. He is suffering from kidney failure after washing up on a New Zealand beach. Veterinarian Lisa Argilla is trying to rehydrate the bird at the Wellington Zoo. SOUNDBITE: Dr Lisa Argilla, a veterinarian at Wellington Zoo, saying (English): "It doesn't want to stand and it's making very small progress every day, but it's still in critical condition." The bird is only the fourth royal penguin ever to show up in New Zealand. The species lives in the sub-Antarctic MAKWAREE Macquarie Island, half way between New Zealand and Antarctica. Penguin expert Colin Miskelly. SOUNDBITE: Penguin expert Colin Miskelly, saying (English): "So it could be a slight shift in oceanic currents or a bird that's a bit more adventurous than its companions to come this far north. For most bird watchers it's only something that will happen once in their life." It looks like his chances of survival are slim, but if the penguin does make it, he will spend at least six weeks in hospital before being released back into the wild.