‘Cute casualties’ on road to recovery with a waddle
[caption id="attachment_37030" align="alignright" width="300"] PENGUIN POWER: From left, Jared and Kyle Daniels, Liam Roy, Keryn Gillham and Matthew Roy at the Cape St Francis Penguin Rehabilitation Centre[/caption]
MOST waddle, some limp and one poor little fellow gets by without feet. They are the permanent residents of the Cape St Francis Penguin Rehabilitation Centre – the ones who will live out their lives with a view of the sea but will never swim in it again.
These cute casualties of man's careless nature are not as lucky as their counterparts who can be taught to fend for themselves and eventually return to the ocean. The facility, based at the famous Cape St Francis Lighthouse, is where the buck stops for many that otherwise would not have made it.
From a conservation point of view, the centre is excellent and from a kiddies' perspective it is extremely informative and loads of fun.
With six kids, ranging in age from five months to 16, we visited the centre to learn about endangered African penguins and what had brought the unfortunate creatures to the centre.
We were greeted with a smile by senior rehabilitator Xolani Lawu, who has been with the centre for 10 years. He knows the name of every penguin there – and there are many – and what tragedies befell each of his little charges. The centre's work mainly involves the rescue and rehabilitation of oiled, sick and dehydrated or injured African penguins as well as other marine animals. Education is another primary focus of the centre.
After letting the children pet one or two of the more docile birds, Xolani, who was quick to point out which ones were biters, showed a video of penguins rescued after Japanese rice carrier the Kiani Satu ran aground off the shores of Knysna.
Much inspired, my in-laws decided to adopt a penguin – named Jack for the obvious reason that belonging to the Daniels family this was the only name he could have.
Jack Daniels and his cohorts will continue on the road to recovery but not without generous help from the public.
For more information, contact (042)298-0160
