I learnt some interesting things in a visit to the colony last weekend:
It’s moulting season for the penguins in the colony.
The moult lasts about three weeks. During this time they replace their worn-out feathers with a brand new set of waterproof feathers. They have to rely on the food and energy stores they tried to stock up with during the “pre-moult” time as they aren’t waterproof and so they can’t fish
With our November weather being cooler than usual, the birds that are in varying stages of moulting are cold without the warm sunny days and are using up more of their pre-moult energy stores to try and keep themselves warm.
If the moult takes longer than normal or the process stops and they go into “moult arrest”, the birds get hungry and lose body weight and are classified as underweight.
They are also itchy and so they can generally be a bit grumpy during this time – so please give them space as they are already under stress during the moult.
Some of these moulting adults still have chicks that were hatched late in the season – so this cycle is a bit “out of sync”. The moulting parents can’t go and fish to feed these “late season” chicks.
The Stony Point staff keep a watch on the moulting birds as well as the late season chicks to check if they are being fed or if they have been abandoned by the parents. When intervention is required, these adults and chicks are sent to SANCCOB for treatment.
There are four species of cormorants at Stony Point, namely the Bank, Cape, Crowned and White-breasted cormorants. They are nesting and raising their chicks at this time of the year. We saw one nest with three hungry chicks in it, so some parents have a very busy time feeding and raising their offspring. They are also having to fish for food in depleted fish stocks.
The large Kelp Gulls hover around the cormorant nests, ready to try to steal eggs or young chicks when they are left unattended by a parent bird who moves off the nest to go fishing or get nesting material. The staff try to provide some nesting material but are also very careful not to disturb the nesting area otherwise the parents fly off and the Kelp Gulls move in to raid their nests.
It’s a tough life out there and the decrease in fish stocks are putting these birds under severe pressure.
Here are some Guidelines for visitors to the Stony Point colony. These are to encourage visitors not to add further stress to the penguins and cormorants during their visit. Please share them with your family, friends and visitors and add them to your tourist information material if you rent out your home.
Photo credits: Moulting penguins, cormorants and kelp Gull: Grant Immelman; Chick: Caire Lottering