TOURISM INDIA MARCH 2019 Tourism India January 2019 IA | Page 39

Wildlife Hospital opened in early 2018,
injured yellow-eyed penguins were
flown to the North Island and only
had a 40-50% chance of survival. That
survival rate has now risen to nearly
88%.
The charity is hoping that someone
will take them up on the offer and
donate a percentage of sales to the
hospital’s operation, in addition to
raising awareness of New Zealand’s
unique but critically endangered
wildlife.
The penguins, aptly named because
of their yellow eyes, breed on the east
coast of New Zealand. On the Otago
Peninsula, just 10 minutes’ drive from
Dunedin city centre, numbers have
dropped by 76 per cent since the mid-
1990s and face possible local extinction
in the next 20 to 40 years. Ongoing
conservation and protection of the
species is an integral part of their
survival, and the Dunedin Wildlife
Hospital plays a pivotal role in this.
THERE'S A NEW DRESS CODE FOR SICK AND INJURED
ENDANGERED PENGUINS AT A NEW ZEALAND WILDLIFE
HOSPITAL - THE LATEST IN BABY ONESIES
Penguin Place is one of the Otago
Peninsula's best loved wildlife
experiences where visitors can view
penguins and other wildlife at close
quarters. Wildlife lovers exploring
Dunedin have a range of opportunities
to see wildlife - both yellow-eyed and
korora little blue penguins, sea lions
and fur seals, albatross and seabirds
- on one of several wildlife tours on
land and sea, including Penguin Place
and the Royal Albatross Centre which
is the world’s only mainland breeding
colony of the northern royal albatross.
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