Little Penguins
The little penguin is the smallest of the 17 penguin species. It is the only penguin to nest along the southern Australian coast from Fremantle to New South Wales. Penguin Island, located in the Shoalwater Islands Marine Park, is one of the most northern places this species is found.
Adults are about 33 to 40 cm tall and weigh about 1 kilogram.
Adults are about 33 to 40 cm tall and weigh about 1 kilogram.
References: penguinfoundation.org.au and penguinisland.com.au
Once you see them it's pretty hard to stop taking pictures. They are adorable.
The penguins were a little curious but cautious when people started coming into their feeding area.
A couple of the little guys realized something was up because people were coming into the building.
One hungry penguin decided it was feeding time.
One penguin, Kevin, was rescued by park staff. He was only 18 grams when they rescued him from seagulls. A normal birth weight is about 40 to 45 grams. At the time of our visit, Kevin decided it was time to build a nest behind the pool even though normal nesting season starts in April, not March. You will see below that when Kevin hops out of the pool, he heads straight back to his nest behind the pool.