CAPE TOWN The endangered African penguin (Spheniscus demersus) could be extinct in the wild in just over a decade. To protect the bird’s food supply and slow its population collapse, South Africa is throwing a protective no-fishing cordon around its main breeding colonies. But the devil is in the details, and conservationists say time […]
CAPE TOWN Seabird ranger Eduard Drost was busy with a routine inspection in an African penguin colony off the South African coast in 2021 when he noticed a troubling number of sickly birds. “Some were emaciated, especially the chicks,” he recalls. “Their chest and hip bones were sticking out. Their bellies were flat, not […]
The Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds and other organisations have warned that the harmful effect of oil pollution on marine life must not be underestimated.