28 Jan 2021

More than 80 penguin chicks die over the summer in Wellington

From Morning Report, 8:40 am on 28 January 2021

Warmer waters and sediment are being blamed for the mass death of Little Blue penguin chicks in Wellington.

After a successful nesting season, 66 baby penguins from Matiu/Somes Island died of starvation during a horror couple of weeks in November.

The season ended with a total loss of 82 chicks, more than one in three of hatchlings recorded this year.

Charlotte Cook filed this story.