Hobbies And Interests
In Water
Penguins spend a great deal of their time in ocean waters swimming to find food such as red cod. While the yellow-eyed penguin is well equipped to swim fast enough to catch darting squid, they occasionally fall prey to sharks, seals and various species of sea lions. Orca occasionally catch yellow-eyed penguins as they dart through waters, and barracudas are known to bite at the feet of penguins, resulting in infected injuries.
On Land
Yellow-eyed penguins spend a great amount of time on land during breeding season, as well as during the 45 day nesting season. During this time the adults can run into waters from ground predators such as domestic dogs, ferrets and skuas, which are large birds similar to gulls. Once the chick hatches, it and one of the parents are bound to land until the chick is old enough to fledge, which last from the middle of February to the middle of March. While parents can run into marine waters to escape predators, eggs and chicks are defenseless.
Interesting Facts
One of the penguin's primary defense mechanisms is the bird's dual-colored plumage, which helps it blend against the dark ocean ceiling and lighter ocean floor. And,while many people associate penguins with cold weather, New Zealand has a range of climates from subtropical to alpine mountainous.
Preservation Efforts
Because of the uniqueness of the species and its endangered numbers, there are several preservation efforts to increase the numbers of the yellow-eyed penguin. There are between 6,000 to 7,000 yellow-eyed penguins globally, however, the low number of breeding pairs has dwindled to a mere 2000. Responsible pet ownership and habitat conservation are the most pressing efforts to increase the yellow-eyed penguin's numbers.