The Amazing Penguin Rescue

Imagine you are an African penguin. The year is 2000. You live on an island in the South Atlantic Ocean. You are with thousands of other penguins on a rocky beach. Even though it’s June, it’s cold and windy. All around you are penguin noises: barks and honks. Some of your penguin friends fight for their space. Others cuddle with their partners and take care of their chicks.

You’re hungry, so you head down to the water’s edge. You waddle on tiny feet. Your wings are too stubby for flying. But in the water, you can swim faster and dive deeper than almost any bird on Earth. After you plunge into the sea, you shoot through the water, just a black-and-white blur. You snatch sardines near the surface. Your thick feathers protect you from the freezing water.

You stay in the sea for hours until your belly is full of sardines. Then you head back to shore.

That’s when something goes wrong.

As you come to the surface for air, the water feels strange. It is thick. It stings your eyes. You try to swim away, but now your wings are too heavy to lift. You can barely catch your breath.

What you don’t know is that just hours ago, a ship called Treasure hit a reef and split apart. As it sank, 1,300 tons of oil gushed into the sea. Thousands of penguins have been soaked with the poisonous oil.

Imagine you are an African penguin. You live on a beach with your penguin friends. One day you are swimming in the ocean. This is usually fun. But today the water feels thick. It stings your eyes. Your wings are too heavy to lift. You can barely catch your breath.

That’s because a ship hit a reef. Then it split apart. The ship was carrying oil. The oil spilled into the sea. Now you and other penguins are covered in the oil. This oil could kill you.

Imagine you are an African penguin. The year is 2000. You live on an island in the South Atlantic Ocean. You are with thousands of penguins on a beach. Even though it’s June, it’s cold and windy. You hear penguin noises: barks and honks. Some of your penguin friends fight for their space. Others cuddle with their partners. They take care of their chicks.

You’re hungry. You head down to the water’s edge. You waddle on tiny feet. Your wings are too stubby for flying. But in the water, you can swim faster and dive deeper than almost any bird on Earth. After you plunge into the sea, you shoot through the water. You grab sardines to eat. Your feathers protect you from the freezing water.

You stay in the sea for hours. When your belly is full of sardines, you head back to shore.

That’s when something goes wrong.

You come to the surface for air. But the water feels strange. It is thick. It stings your eyes. You try to swim away. But now your wings are too heavy to lift. You can barely catch your breath.

You don’t know it, but hours ago, a ship called Treasure hit a reef. Then it split apart. As it sank, 1,300 tons of oil gushed into the sea. Thousands of penguins are soaked with the poisonous oil.

Imagine you are an African penguin living on an island in the middle of the South Atlantic Ocean. You live with tens of thousands of other penguins on a rocky beach. It’s a typical day there in June—cold and windy. The beach echoes with penguin noises, barks and honks and brays. Some of your fellow penguins fight for territory. Others cuddle with their mates and dote on their chicks.

You’re hungry, so you head down to the water’s edge. You waddle on tiny feet, and your wings are too stubby for flying. But in the water, you can swim faster and dive deeper than almost any bird on Earth. As you plunge into the sea, your wings become powerful underwater propellers. You shoot through the water at 12 miles an hour, a black-and-white blur, snatching sardines from the surface, swallowing them whole, then catching more. Your thick feathers protect you from the freezing water.

You stay in the sea for hours until your belly is full. Then you turn to head back to shore.

That’s when something goes wrong.

As you come to the surface for air, the water feels unfamiliar. It is thick, and it burns your eyes. You try to swim away, but suddenly your wings are too heavy to lift and you can barely propel yourself. Your body wobbles and rolls. You feel bitterly cold. You shiver and gasp for breath.

What you don’t know is that just hours ago, a cargo ship called Treasure hit a reef and split apart. As it sank, 1,300 tons of toxic crude oil gushed into the sea. Oil surrounds your breeding ground—the largest African penguin breeding ground in the world.

You are not the only penguin that has become soaked with the poisonous oil. Thousands of others have been trapped in the massive oil slick.

The impact of oil on a penguin (or any bird) is immediate and devastating. You are shivering because the oil has caused your layers of feathers to separate. Freezing water now lashes at your sensitive skin. Your eyes hurt because the oil has burned them. Your wings are heavy because they are coated with oil.

But your instinct for survival is strong. Somehow you struggle back to shore, fighting the waves and the current. The trip, usually effortless, is an agonizing ordeal. You manage to stagger onto the beach and back to your nest. You lick and peck at your feathers, desperate to clean them. Finally you give up. There is nothing to do but stand there, terrified, dazed, and silent.

Need to Survive

Need to Survive

Need to Survive

Oil does awful things to a penguin (or any bird). It makes your feathers separate. Now you are shivering because freezing water is hitting your sensitive skin. Your eyes hurt because the oil has burned them. Your wings are heavy because they are covered in oil.

But you want to survive. Somehow you struggle back to shore. You manage to stagger onto the beach and back to your nest. You lick your feathers, trying to clean them. Finally you give up. You stand there, terrified and silent.

Oil does awful things to a penguin. It makes your feathers separate. Now you are shivering. Freezing water is hitting your sensitive skin. Your eyes hurt. The oil has burned them. Your wings are heavy. They are covered in oil.

But you want to survive. Somehow you get back to shore. You stagger onto the beach and back to your nest. You lick your feathers. You’re trying to clean them. Then you give up. You just stand there, scared and quiet.

Oil does terrible things to a penguin. It makes your feathers separate. Now you are shivering. Freezing water is hitting your sensitive skin. Your eyes hurt. The oil has burned them. Your wings are heavy. They are covered in oil.

But you want to survive. Somehow you get back to shore. You stagger onto the beach and back to your nest. You lick your feathers. You’re trying to clean them. Finally, you give up. You stand there, scared and silent.

Strange Creatures

Strange Creatures

Strange Creatures

Then the beach is invaded by huge creatures.

They are humans, but you don’t know that. You have never seen a human before. These men and women know that this oil spill is terrible for you and your species. Some of the people have spent their lives helping birds like you. All they want to do is save your life.

As the humans swarm the beach, you become scared. A man catches you. You use your strong jaws and sharp beak to bite his arm. But the man doesn’t let go.

Now you bite his leg. The wound will leave a scar on the man for the rest of his life. But he seems to care more about you than about himself.

All across the beach, people are capturing penguins. The people are getting slapped by wings and bitten as they load penguins into crates. It is painful and tiring work. And it’s sad to see all of these scared and injured penguins. Some of the humans try not to cry. But they don’t give up. Thousands of penguins are in danger. And the workers want to save them all.

Then the beach is taken over by huge creatures.

They are humans. But you have never seen a human before. These men and women know that this oil spill is terrible for you. Some of the people have spent their lives helping birds like you. All they want to do is save your life.

The humans swarm the beach. You are scared. A man catches you. You bite his arm. But the man doesn’t let go.

Now you bite his leg. The wound will leave a scar on the man. But he seems to care more about you than about himself.

All across the beach, people are catching penguins. The people are getting hit by wings and bitten as they load penguins into crates. It is painful and tiring work. And it’s sad to see all of these scared and hurt penguins. Some of the humans try not to cry. But they don’t give up. The workers want to save all of the penguins.

Then the beach is invaded by enormous creatures.

They are humans, but you don’t know that. You have never seen a human before. These men and women know what you don’t: that this oil spill is a catastrophe for you and your species. Some of them have devoted their lives to helping birds like you, birds caught in oil spills and other human-made disasters. They have helped with bird rescues around the world. All they care about is saving your life.

But how could you know this?

As the humans swarm the beach, you are overcome with panic. A man catches you. You lash out viciously with your powerful jaws and razor-sharp beak. You bite his arm, ripping his skin through the fabric of his thick coat. He doesn’t let go. You strike again, biting his leg, inflicting a wound that will leave a scar for the rest of his life. But he cares more about you than himself. All across the beach, dozens of people are capturing penguins, enduring excruciating bites and wing slaps as they load you and the other penguins into crates. It is painful, exhausting work. The sight of all of these scared and injured penguins is heartbreaking to the humans. Some—grown men and women—fight tears.

But they don’t give up. Tens of thousands of penguins are in danger. And they intend to save every single one.

Ten miles from the island, outside the city of Cape Town, a team of workers and volunteers has transformed a warehouse into a penguin rescue center. They have worked with astonishing speed. The warehouse holds hundreds of round enclosures, each large enough for 100 penguins. There are additional areas where penguins will be washed. One room is filled with ten tons of frozen fish, the amount needed daily to feed the penguins. Acquiring this enormous quantity of fish every day will be one of the workers’ great challenges.

Actually, everything is a challenge. Simply getting one penguin to eat is a monumental task. In the wild, penguins hunt for sardines and gobble them up while they are still alive and wriggling. These penguins won’t accept the dead fish offered by human hands; workers have to force-feed them. They must restrain a penguin, pry its beak open, and shove the fish down its throat. Feeding one penguin can take an hour. Feeding all of the penguins takes an army of workers 15 hours.

And then there is the smell that fills the warehouse—a combination of penguin droppings, dead sardines, and human sweat. It is a stench so powerful that many people throw up when they first arrive.

But not even the smell keeps people away.

As news of the rescue effort spreads, hundreds, and then thousands, of volunteers flock to the warehouse, eager to help. They are a diverse group, including rich women from fancy neighborhoods and poor teenagers from Cape Town’s streets. Some have experience helping wildlife; some have never even owned a pet. All of them have one thing in common: a mission to save as many penguins as possible.

Everything Is Hard

Hard Times

Everything Is Hard

Terror and Healing

Ten miles from the island, a team of workers and volunteers has turned a warehouse into a penguin rescue center. The warehouse has many separate areas to contain the penguins. In other areas, penguins will be washed. One room is filled with tons of frozen fish. It’s very hard to catch enough fish to feed all the penguins.

Actually, everything is hard. Just getting one penguin to eat is difficult. In the wild, penguins gobble up sardines while the fish are alive. Penguins don’t want dead fish. So workers have to hold the penguins, pull their beaks open, and shove the fish down their throats. Feeding all of them takes 15 hours.

And then there is the stinky smell that fills the warehouse. It comes from penguin droppings, dead sardines, and human sweat. Many people throw up when they first arrive. But not even the smell keeps people away.

Thousands of volunteers come to the warehouse. They include rich women from fancy neighborhoods and poor teenagers from city streets. Some have never even owned a pet. But all of them want to save the penguins.

Then, people arrive on the beach. You have never seen a human before. You are scared. People are putting penguins in crates. This includes you too. You are taken to a building. Workers wash and feed all the penguins.

But feeding them all takes all day. And the building stinks! It smells like penguin poop, dead fish, and sweat. Many people throw up at first. But not even the smell keeps the helpers away. They want to save the penguins.

A team of people is 10 miles away. They have turned a building into a penguin rescue center. They will wash and feed the penguins. But just getting one penguin to eat is hard. In the wild, penguins eat sardines that are still alive. Penguins don’t want dead fish. So workers have to hold the penguins and pull their beaks open. Then they shove the fish down their throats. Feeding them all takes a full day.

And then there is the stinky smell in the warehouse. It comes from penguin droppings, dead sardines, and human sweat. Many people throw up when they first arrive. But not even the smell keeps people away.

Thousands of helpers come to the building. Some are rich women from fancy neighborhoods. Some are poor teenagers from city streets. Some have never even owned a pet. But all of them want to save the penguins.

For you, one of thousands of oil-soaked penguins, every hour brings new terrors—the force feedings, the ointment put into your eyes, the tube stuck down your throat to pump liquid charcoal into your stomach.

But as time goes by, you begin to feel better. The ointment heals your eyes. The liquid charcoal helps your body rid itself of the oil you swallowed. You feel stronger. The humans win your trust. You accept fish from their hands. There is one woman who comes every day. You recognize her voice and greet her with a bark.

After many weeks, it is your turn to have the oil cleaned from your feathers. You are taken to a room and placed into a plastic tub. A woman pours vegetable oil over you. This loosens the caked-on crude oil. She washes you with mild soap and warm water. She works with gentle hands, scrubbing your body—one feather at a time—with a toothbrush. You do not bite her. After your feathers are clean and dry, this woman picks you up. She holds you close to her chest. You do not try to get away.

Heading for Home

Heading for Home

Heading for Home

Heading for Home

Weeks go by. Then one day, you are put into a box. You feel yourself being moved. When the box is opened, you are on a strange beach. You stand there for a bit. Then you can’t help yourself. You run toward the water and dive in. You follow a mysterious signal buried deep inside your memory. This is called instinct. You swim until you get to the shores of a rocky island. Your island!

While you were gone, humans cleaned up the oil that had covered the beach. The ocean carried the rest away.

Soon, thousands of penguins arrive on the island. Once again, sounds of honks and barks fill the air. You’ve been part of the greatest animal rescue in history. Nearly 40,000 penguins were saved. Many of them will pair up with mates. Baby penguins will be born.

You don’t know any of this because you are a penguin.

All you know is that your world is once again the way it should be.

Weeks pass. Then one day, you are put into a box again. You feel yourself being moved. When the box is opened, you are on a beach. First you stand there. Then you run toward the water. You dive in. You swim until you find your way back to your island.

While you were gone, humans cleaned up the oil on the beach. The ocean washed the rest away.

Soon, the rest of the penguins come home. They honk and bark like they did before the oil spill.

You’ve been part of the greatest animal rescue ever. Nearly 40,000 penguins were saved. Many of them will find mates. Then baby penguins will be born.

And your world is back to the way it should be.

Weeks pass. Then one day, you are put into a box. You feel yourself being moved. When the box is opened, you are on a strange beach. First you stand there. Then you can’t help yourself. You run toward the water and dive in. You swim until you reach the shores of a rocky island. It’s your island!

While you were gone, humans cleaned up the oil on the beach. The ocean carried the rest away.

Soon, the rest of the penguins arrive on the island. Once again, sounds of honks and barks fill the air. You’ve been part of the greatest animal rescue ever. Nearly 40,000 penguins were saved. Many of them will find mates. Baby penguins will be born.

You don’t know any of this because you are a penguin.

All you know is that your world is back to the way it should be.

Weeks go by until one day, you are put into a box. You feel yourself being moved. When the box is opened, you are on a strange beach. You stand there until your instinct takes over. You run toward the water and plunge in. You follow a mysterious signal that lurks inside your memory. Soon you are on the shores of a rocky island.

Your island.

While you were gone, humans cleaned up the oil that had covered the beach. The ocean carried the rest away.

Before long, thousands of other penguins arrive on the island. The air is filled with honks and barks. You have no idea that you have been part of the greatest animal rescue in history. Close to 40,000 penguins were saved. In the coming weeks, researchers will be elated to see that many of the rescued birds are paired up with mates and sitting on eggs.

You don’t think about any of this because you are a penguin.

All you know is that your world is once again as it should be.