Welcome to the NZPI February Newsletter. We hope our extended penguin network enjoyed some well-deserved rest over the summer holidays. The NZPI team have begun 2026 with publishing our latest Annual Review report, attending our annual work meet up in Wellington, progressing with the National Diet Study and providing lots of rescue guidance. It has been sad to hear about colonies around the Hauraki Gulf, Bay of Plenty and Coromandel facing starvation events over summer, with a number of penguins washing ashore in distress. Thanks to all the community groups and members of public that notice something is wrong, report the penguins and help get them out of harm’s way e.g. from dogs. This year NZPI has a strong focus on progressing our monitoring app and national database, diet study research, enhancing advocacy and threat management. Seaweek kicks off this weekend (28 Feb-8 March) and is a great opportunity to raise awareness for penguins and get stuck into making their homes safe! We had a great turnout for our first monthly meeting of the year, with lots of interesting discussion and learning. See details at the end of the newsletter to join in on the next one and talk penguins, listen, learn and meet other great penguin people doing wonderful conservation work 🐧

If you have missed our previous newsletter editions, you can read them here https://www.nzpi.nz/news

NZPI Annual Review December 2025 Available

We have reached the halfway mark of our three-year diet study of kororā around the country. It would be challenging to summarise everything here, so shown below is an impression of what is going on. The scat DNA is analysed for fish and non-fish prey: Fish are lumped together in families and non-fish species (salps, squid, octopus etc) are in the “Other species” category. Samples are taken four times a year, and that means we now have two years with spring and summer samples - presented below.

There are of course always exceptions: Leigh and Muriwai in spring 2025, South Island’s West Coast in spring 2024 and Nelson in summer 2025.

In the last two sampling periods (spring and summer) we added four new fish families to the pie chart: Bullies, Morey eels, Gurnards and Halfbeaks - all from the east coast (both islands) plus Nelson. We now also have an impressive list of extralimital fish kororā have eaten: Needlefishes (light blue) from the Kermadec Islands, Pacific Saury (light purple), Sea perch and Japanese anchovy from the North Pacific, Southern goatfish and Speckled stargazer from the Australian coastal waters (apparently not in NZ). All these cases require more investigation to clarify how such results are possible.

Many thanks to all the groups contributing but particularly to the Leigh, Kaiteriteri, Kaikoura, Timaru and Catlins groups who are funding their own samples: you are plucking important gaps in the coverage. If you are interested, there is still time to join- the study’s last sampling is in winter 2027, so there are another six samples to go.

Get in touch for more information at admin@nzpi.nz

Kororā can be found on land any time of year, which makes them vulnerable- ALL YEAR ROUND, and colonies are highly active on land throughout the breeding and moulting seasons.

Kororā have an annual cycle (Pre-breeding, Breeding, Moulting, Post-Moulting), however the exact timing of which they initiate and undertake the different stages can vary:

• within a colony

• between neighbouring colonies

• across regions

• across islands

A number of factors can influence variations in the timing of activities within the annual cycle:

• Environmental/ocean conditions

• Food availability

• Individuals, clade (NZ or Australian/Otago), colony size & social behaviour

• Local/site specific conditions or events that occur

• What has occurred within a season, and in the previous year/years

Understanding that there is variation in the presence/absence of penguins on land is critical to be able to manage their habitats well and help keep them safe from dogs, predators, development, land maintenance and disturbance throughout the year.

Know areas where your local kororā live and travel to and from the sea

Kororā occupy all sorts of habitats, which can make them vulnerable and prone to risky situations, particularly in urban environments. They can travel far inland, climb steep cliffs/hills, use streams/ rivers/lagoons, travel across roads and paths and venture into coastal pastures and residential or commercial properties. Essentially, they can be anywhere- given they have a space to hide! Once they find a place they like- they usually like to stay there and will keep coming back for years. It really helps to know where they are (or likely to be) in your local area, if you want to help prevent any harm coming to them. 

Ask your local councils/DOC for dog regulations to be in place all year-round near kororā habitat

Temporary dog restrictions that are put in place for “breeding season” unfortunately don’t help protect “pre-breeding” adults that come ashore and spend time loafing about in their burrows, nest-building, pairing up etc. They often also don’t cover the most vulnerable time period for kororā- when they are undertaking their annual moult. The timing of moulting will vary largely across individuals and can extend throughout late summer and autumn. As other adults start returning to sort out their nesting spots, the “downtime” at a site when “penguins aren’t there”, may be very little or none at all. Having dog restrictions in place all year round also helps simplify messaging on signage, which makes it easier for communities to learn/understand the rules…and help advocate by spreading the word!

Enhance fencing and native vegetation around burrows, boxes and pathways

Having designated areas that public and dogs can’t enter is hugely beneficial and will increase protection for your local kororā. It also helps create more enriched habitat, by providing cover and nesting materials. It’s important to future proof and if you can enhance/restore habitat away from the ocean, that will help prevent burrow wash outs and coastal erosion as sea level rises. Small coastal trees and native grasses that allow penguins to walk through easily are a great choice. Barrier design is largely site dependent (and budget), and can be vary elaborate or very simple- but must always ensure birds can move about freely without becoming entangled/sustain injuries to feathers, flippers etc.

Ensure surveys are undertaken prior to any works, maintenance or development

Educating landowners and stakeholders (local council and DOC staff) to ensure that penguins may be present at any time and all kororā habitat (or potential habitat) needs to be surveyed properly, to determine the presence/absence of penguins immediately prior to any works being undertaken. Activities such as digging holes for posts/pools/ponds, weed spraying, weed eating, rabbit fumigation, drain clearing, chain sawing and coastal developments/rock revetment- can all pose serious risk of stress and harm to penguins.

Ensure pest control efforts are in place and target the most vulnerable time periods

Breeding and moulting seasons are a favourable time for predators, as penguins spend lots of time in their burrows and are either incubating eggs, guarding young chicks, older chicks that are left alone, or adults stuck on land for 2-3 weeks moulting. All these stages are a particularly vulnerable and susceptible time for predation events (as well as dog attacks).

Auckland, Bay of Plenty and Coromandel colonies have seen a significant number of starving penguins wash ashore over summer. Many birds have been severely emaciated and have either needed to be humanely euthanised or died within hours of being rescued.

We recommend any penguin found out in the open during the day needs to be rescued and have a thorough medical assessment undertaken. Sometimes injuries or illnesses are not always obvious, and they can go unnoticed for some time. If they are left out in the open or put in the dunes/behind some vegetation, they are at high risk of dog attacks and are likely to suffer unnecessarily if they do have undetected injuries e.g. from boat strikes, bite wounds, entanglement.

There are a number of organisations that dedicate their time to penguin rescue and/or rehabilitation across the country Member Centres | Wildlife Rehabilitators Network of New Zealand and many of our kororā conservation groups are happy to help rescue penguins in need along their local coastline Kororā/Little Penguin Community Conservation - New Zealand Penguin Initiative. Huge thanks to all those involved with getting rescued kororā back to the wild.

If you do rescue a penguin please speak with a penguin rescue organisation/rehabilitator for advice and notify 0800 DOC HOT and the local penguin group, so they are aware and can add it to their records. Please also ensure you have strong disease awareness, wear PPE and can recognise the signs of HPAI before undertaking any rescues. NEVER attempt to put penguins in the ocean or water, as this can cause significant stress and be fatal. 

If you live in an area below, get along and support one these great events to learn about coastal/marine species, and help clean up habitats for penguins and other native wildlife. Some events below are focused on Dotterels; however, because penguins often share similar habitat to shorebirds- they both benefit when they are looked after!

• Mangawhai- Northland: Mangawhai Community Clean-Up & MAZ Working Bee | Seaweek

• Maritime Museum- Auckland CBD- Honu and Blue’s Sealife Clues storytime | Seaweek

• Takapuna-Auckland: Coastal Clean-Up Walk | Seaweek

• Moturiki Island, Mount Maunganui- Bay of Plenty: Moturiki Island Clean-Up with Western Bay Wildlife Trust | Seaweek

• Paritūtū Reserve & Back Beach, New Plymouth- Taranaki: Nature Cleanup – Paritūtū Reserve & Back Beach | Seaweek

• Napier Beach- Hawke’s Bay: The GREAT BIG Napier Beach Clean! | Seaweek

• Waipūreku/Clive- Hawke’s Bay: Beach Clean Up in Waipūreku/Clive | Seaweek

• Waitangi Regional Park- Hawke’s Bay: Big Beach Clean Up | Seaweek

• Te Whanganui-a-Orotu/Ahuriri Estuary- Hawke’s Bay: Te Whanganui-a-Orotu / Ahuriri Estuary Cleanup | Seaweek

• Island Bay- Wellington: Island Bay Beach Clean Up | Seaweek

• Kaikoura- Canterbury: Clean-Up Dive | Seaweek

• New Brighton, Christchurch- Canterbury: Litter Intelligence Audit & Beach Clean Up | Seaweek

• South New Brighton, Christchurch- Canterbury: Estuary Edge Clean Up | Seaweek

• Sumner, Christchurch- Canterbury: Coastguard Sumner Beach Clean up | Seaweek

• Akaroa, Banks Peninusula: Seaweek Variety Show | Seaweek

• Timaru, Canterbury: Seaweek Eco Talk | Seaweek

• Waitarakao Beach, Timaru- Canterbury: Our Waitarakao Beach Clean Up | Seaweek