Visiting Stony Point to see the African Penguins is one of the top tourist attractions in the area.
There are many rental homes and B&B’s in Betty’s Bay and surrounds and visitors may be unaware of how their behavior in the colony negatively impacts the penguins.
Here are a few tips for visitors to enjoy this special and important colony.
- Drive slowly when you arrive at the colony.
- You might see penguins in the vegetation at the car park, but please don’t walk into the bushes to get close to them.
- Although penguins are such incredible marine birds and it’s tempting to get as close as possible to them, please keep three (3) meters away from them.
- Rather use a zoom lens for close-up photos instead of getting too close or taking “selfie” photos with the birds.
- It’s an amazing experience for children to see the penguins:
Please teach your children to visit quietly at the colony so as not to stress the penguins and to not touch, chase them or throw things at them.
- Please respect the signage and the rules at the colony.
- Stay on the designated pathways so that you don’t disturb nesting sites.
- Give the penguins “right of way” and space so you don’t block pathways to their nests or to the sea.
- Please don’t attempt to feed them anything.
- Take some time to read the interesting information on the signage boards to learn about the penguins and other seabirds at the colony and of their endangered status.
- Before you drive away from the colony, check that no penguins are hiding under your car. Drive slowly as you exit the colony gates and drive into the road.
Carol Clark