These birds are of the same group that were released from Port Elizabeth between June 2 and 4. Of the 12,345 uncontaminated birds that were evacuated from Dassen Island, Western Cape Nature Conservation staff on the Island ringed 643 penguins and have been monitoring the West Bay, Whale Bay and House Bay penguin landing strips to witness the return of the birds. Many untagged birds may have arrived elsewhere on Dassen Island and conservators are estimating that up to half the amount of penguins evacuated may already have made their way back. In busy shipping areas like South Africa, oil spills often damage penguins' feathers, causing them to lose their insulating, water-repellent quality. Penguins may freeze or starve if they cannot swim to catch food.
Penguins also ingest oil, which is fatal.
De-oiling birds is a time consuming, exacting process but it gives the creatures an 85 percent chance of survival. The African penguin, known also as the jackass penguin because of the donkey-like braying noise it makes, was more plentiful a century ago when the population numbered about 1.5 million. Now only 10 per cent of them remain, concentrated on islands like Robben and Dassen. Last month's rescue mission was the largest of its kind in the world and the final cost is expected to run into millions of US dollars. All Rights Reserved.