Time is almost up for a species of penguin being driven to the brink of extinction by climate change and overfishing.
The crisis is so severe that African penguins could disappear in the wild as soon as 2035 if severe measures are not taken to ensure their survival. Numbers have plummeted from over one million breeding pairs in the 1900s to less than 10,000 today - a decline of 95%.
The situation is so dire they are now more endangered than white rhinos. The Mirror was joined by Springwatch presenter Michaela Strachan, 58, who issued a stark warning. She said: “I have lived in Cape Town for the past 22 years and these birds are iconic to this part of the world. I can’t imagine them not being here. To lose such a charismatic species would be absolutely devastating for the planet. This is not going to happen on my watch.”
Albert Synman, a researcher at the South African National Federation for the Conservation of Sea Birds (SANCCOB) said: “It really is no exaggeration to say they are real trouble. The science is clear. These bird numbers are crashing. Each year overall the population is declining by 8-10% and they just can’t reproduce quick enough. The harsh reality is unless change happens, there is very little hope for them.” So, what’s the problem? Put simply African Penguins are starving to death.
Over the last decade, sourcing sufficient food has become an immense struggle for the species - found only in South Africa and Namibia. Warming ocean temperatures are driving fish stocks elsewhere, while competition with commercial fisheries that target anchovies and sardines - the staple food of African penguins - is driving the crisis. Each year hundreds of emancipated chicks are cared for by conservationists at SANCCOB who say their survival depends on each individual they can rescue.
But as if those threats were not enough to contend with, the African Penguin, also known as the Black Footed Penguin, is also being impacted by extreme weather events. Heatwaves have led to chicks being abandoned or dying from heat stress, while flash floods have led to burrows being washed away. A recent outbreak of bird flu has also impacted some birds, while oil spills, nautical noise pollution and entanglement in lost fishing nets also present threats. Some are even run over by cars or caught up in plastic bags.
As I sat on the rocks at Foxy Beach, part of Table Mountain National Park, with TV’s Michaela, we watched several penguins swimming in the chilly Indian Ocean, while parents tended to their chicks. Tourists were starting to gather on the wooden viewing platform to take pictures of the birds, one of the few mainland colonies.
“Just look how charismatic these animals are,” says Michaela, who lives in Cape Town with her partner, Nick Chevallier, a wildlife cameraman. It is not a surprise to hear that the species is her favourite as she is wearing a silver penguin necklace, alongside dangly earrings in the shape of the African continent.
You may wonder why saving a species of penguin on the other side of the world matters. Penguins are a keystone species that play a vital role in the health of our oceans - essential for fighting the impact of climate change - by transferring large amounts of nutrients from their colonies.
When their guano (excrement) is washed into the sea it in turn promots algal growth and boosts the health of the marine ecosystem which supports numerous other shorebird and other marine invertebrates. Penguins also use this build up of guano to build their nests by scrapping out layers of it as well as soil. These burrows offer protection for themselves and their chicks from the elements and any potential predators.
Dr Lauren Waller, a scientist at SANCCOB who has studied penguins for the last 20 years, said the problems started for the species last century. She explained how historically seabird excrement was used as agriculture fertiliser meaning that burrows were targeted. “Guano scraping at colonies no longer happens but it's also had a huge impact on the numbers of birds present now by disturbing breeding penguins, but also destroying this breeding habitat. Oil spills have had an impact but the biggest threat at the moment that’s driving these continuous population declines is lack of food.”
Critically, these six colonies are home to an estimated 90% of South Africa’s African Penguins. WWF South Africa warns that dwindling numbers of these sentinels of the ocean - marine species that act as health barometer - shows there is something seriously wrong in the seas.
The African penguin is the continent’s only penguin species, and one of 18 global penguin species. Nine are on the red list of endangered or vulnerable penguins, while three more are considered near threatened. This makes the African Penguin one of the world’s most threatened birds, second only to the albatross. Conservationists have submitted paperwork to the IUCN to get the species placed on a critically endangered list alongside mountain gorillas and tapanuli orangutans.
Five South African colonies have become extinct since 2005. Commercial fishery which continues to catch sardine and anchovy in the waters surrounding the six largest African Penguin breeding colonies. Critically, these six colonies are home to an estimated 90% of South Africa’s African Penguins. Around 2,000 penguins call Boulders Beach, a popular tourist destination, their home. Numbers are steady at this colony as its waters are protected from fishing.
Scientists say implementing more “biologically meaningful closures around African Penguin breeding areas” is essential for their future survival. Earlier this year the Biodiversity Law Centre, representing BirdLife South Africa and the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB), initiated a landmark legal case against the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment.
Kate Handley, Executive Director of the Biodiversity Law Centre, says: “The Minister has failed to fulfil these obligations to African Penguins, South Africans, the international community, and future generations. It is for this reason that we are taking her office to court.”
Michaela Strachan added: “The main threats penguins are facing are also having an impact species in the UK, like puffins. We must solve these issues in order to protect seabirds all over the world."