A “Durban Beach” image from Flickr – click on the name of the photographer below to see more Durban goodness and to thank the photographer.
International Penguin Day
Photo by Axel Bührmann
It’s practically impossible to look at a penguin and feel angry – Joe Moore
It was World Penguin Day on Monday, and I missed it. But I have a few snaps to share, including a penguin hug. Better late than never.
//World Penguin Day takes place during the annual northern migration of Adélie penguins, a species of penguin that is native to Antarctica. Adélie penguins migrate north to have better access to food during the winter months when the sea ice expands and then, during the summer, return to the coastal beaches of Antarctica to build their nests.
This annual celebration of penguins was created at McMurdo Station, an American research center on Ross Island. Researchers noticed that the Adélie penguins began their migration around this day each year, and so they founded World Penguin Day as a way to mark the occasion and raise awareness of these creatures.
While the day originated from the Adélie penguin’s migration habits, it celebrates all species of penguin and highlights the plight of these water-loving creatures. Of the 17 or so species around today (the total number of species varies depending on how you classify them, but there are at least 17 and possibly as many as 20!), sadly 10 of them have been deemed endangered or vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and 3 are considered near threatened.
Penguins spend up to three quarters of their lives out at sea and are reliant on the oceans for food. Overfishing and pollution such as plastic and oil spills therefore pose a real threat to these birds and have contributed to decreasing populations, which in turn has a knock-on effect on the wider ecosystem. And for those species based in the Antarctic (the emperor penguin and the Adélie penguin), climate change is shrinking the sea ice, which not only impinges on their habitat but can also impact chick hatching times and the availability of food.//
SOURCE: www.daysoftheyear.com/days/world-penguin-day/
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Have you tried: Visiting Port Elizabeth?
Quick Durban KwaZulu-Natal Fact: KwaZulu-Natal borders the following areas of Mozambique, Swaziland, and Lesotho: Maputo Province, Mozambique – far northeast; Lubombo District, Swaziland – northeast, east of Shiselweni; Shiselweni District, Swaziland – northeast, west of Lubombo; Mokhotlong District, Lesotho – southwest, north of Thaba-Tseka; Thaba-Tseka District, Lesotho – southwest, between Mokhotlong and Qacha’s Nek; Qacha’s Nek District, Lesotho – southwest, south of Thaba-Tseka. Domestically, it borders the following provinces: Mpumalanga – north; Free State – west; Eastern Cape – southwest.
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