Blog
Olivia – the feisty lady penguin.
It was early evening when Vila, Pōhatu’s predator control trapper - was driving through the creek ford, when she noticed a penguin just sitting on the bank, out in the open. Unusual behavior for these usually secretive birds.
Vila decided to take a closer look… and the bird didn’t move, on closer inspection she noticed it had a completely white eye. She thought maybe it had been hit by floating debris from a big flood we had 2 days before and was blind in that eye. She decided to bring it to me - the main rehabber for the Helps Pōhatu Conservation trust – where our new DoC permitted rehab area has been set up in our backyard.
I was in the middle of cooking dinner when Vila arrived with the penguin, she said it was pretty feisty, and bit her several times while putting it in the bucket (the only thing she had on hand at the time to carry it in).
I turned off the stove, cooking aside and took a look. She bit me (the penguin not Vila) and struggled, and I noticed it had a hot swollen foot. Hot swollen feet on a penguin is not good. Not good for anyone really, but for a penguin it can mean infection which can sometimes develop to a bone infection and it can be very hard to recover from.
It was getting late so I messaged Pauline - the penguin vet in Christchurch - letting her know I was coming in with a penguin in the morning. I also thought it was blind in one eye and thought it might have to live out it’s days at the International Antarctic Center as an advocate… if it survived.
I made Miss penguin comfortable for her overnight stay, lots of towels so she could snuggle down and take pressure off her bad foot. She repaid me with a snip and a bite. Vila said good luck (in a good riddance kind of tone). Pleased to have nothing more to do with the situation.
In the morning I loaded her into the van, feisty as ever with her bad eye and swollen foot.
We made it to the vet clinic - Willowbank wildlife hospital, a one-and-a-half-hourdrive. Pauline was actually away on holiday but had arranged for another vet to come in for our feisty friend. Pauline is one of the only penguin vets in Canterbury, so, ever volunteering for our wildlife - she had to video conference while the other vet performed the surgery. It wasn’t looking good, turn out miss feisty had lacerations from a small shark and the wounds were infected. But guess what? With the amazing veterinarian skills, they pulled her through.
After a few weeks, it was time for me to come back and get her, she was ready to go home. I drove to Christchurch, did some much-needed shopping, then last stop, picked up Olivia.
I could hear her claws scratching the inside of the box. She was using her beak and head, levering herself up by her chin. I freaked out, I would soon have a penguin running around the van with me, biting my ankles and getting under the foot pedals.
I pulled over on the highway, moved all my shopping around the back, making a barrier between me and the penguin and tightened the towel on top of her box. She growled at me and tried to peck me but luckily for the rest of the drive stayed put.
It was late by the time I got home. I live in Akaroa and Pōhatu is another 45-minute drive. So, I planned to go in the morning, Olivia would spend the night in our penguin rehab center. Kristina had given me some fresh baby Salmon to feed her. I wasn’t looking forward to that experience… and I was right not to. She almost ate my fingers off.
Unfortunately, our rehab area is built just outside our bedroom window… And Olivia, being a penguin was very vocal and active all night. In summer I get use to penguin sounds, but it was winter and we don’t normally have penguins in rehab this time of year. I could hear her calling, jumping, scratching and digging. Thank goodness we have a pretty hardcore enclosure, she was in a hutch, within a bigger mosquito proof enclosure - with a locked door, within a bigger enclosure surround by deer fencing and chicken wire. Fort knocks for penguins you could say. They are really clever birds that are amazing climbers, and great at digging tunnels. I’ve never been so worried about a penguin escaping before – she had me checking on her late at night, my anxiety high from her previous highway escape.
Next morning, she’s there. Looking up at me like… What? Bright eyed and bushy tailed (well as much as a penguin can be bushy tailed).
I had a good carry caged this time for the trip to Pōhatu.
She was actually well behaved this time, seemed a bit like she knew what was going on.
We got to the bay, it was one of those glorious sunny winters’ morning. The sea flat and clear. No giant petrels to be seen (which is a natural predator for penguins), ideal for penguins relaxing in the bay.
I swear she heard the lapping of the waves when I opened up the van door. She started jumping around and scratching in the cage. Ok, hard release it is. Normally we put rehabbed birds in a soft release box on the beach – so we can check on them, feed them if they don’t go and they can choose to go when they are ready… But Olivia was ready.
I put the cage on the beach, opened up the lid and gently tipped it over, hands clear. She promptly jumped out and nonchalantly waddled straight to the sea. She dove under the first small wave, popped up, swam around a bit on the surface, drank some sea water and with the next wave dove under and took off like an underwater missile, leaving a streamlined wake into the big blue. No looking back, no thanks for saving my life.
She had been given a microchip. So, if we find her on our monitoring rounds it’s going to feel bloody good. It’s right on the time of year they start nest building, and my hope is Olivia finds her partner and gets settled for the season.
Older birds are worth rehabbing, these are the experienced birds at raising chicks, it can take some time to learn how to be a good parent.
You get all kinds of penguins through rehab, some are just the timidest gentle souls, some grumpy, some chilled out, but when you get a feisty penguin like Olivia, you just know with their survival instinct and tenacity they are probably at the top of the pecking order and super penguins to have leading the colony.
Written by Averil Parthonnaud. Winter 2022.
DoC licensed Penguin Rehabber for the Helps Pōhatu Conservation Trust.
Vila decided to take a closer look… and the bird didn’t move, on closer inspection she noticed it had a completely white eye. She thought maybe it had been hit by floating debris from a big flood we had 2 days before and was blind in that eye. She decided to bring it to me - the main rehabber for the Helps Pōhatu Conservation trust – where our new DoC permitted rehab area has been set up in our backyard.
I was in the middle of cooking dinner when Vila arrived with the penguin, she said it was pretty feisty, and bit her several times while putting it in the bucket (the only thing she had on hand at the time to carry it in).
I turned off the stove, cooking aside and took a look. She bit me (the penguin not Vila) and struggled, and I noticed it had a hot swollen foot. Hot swollen feet on a penguin is not good. Not good for anyone really, but for a penguin it can mean infection which can sometimes develop to a bone infection and it can be very hard to recover from.
It was getting late so I messaged Pauline - the penguin vet in Christchurch - letting her know I was coming in with a penguin in the morning. I also thought it was blind in one eye and thought it might have to live out it’s days at the International Antarctic Center as an advocate… if it survived.
I made Miss penguin comfortable for her overnight stay, lots of towels so she could snuggle down and take pressure off her bad foot. She repaid me with a snip and a bite. Vila said good luck (in a good riddance kind of tone). Pleased to have nothing more to do with the situation.
In the morning I loaded her into the van, feisty as ever with her bad eye and swollen foot.
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We made it to the vet clinic - Willowbank wildlife hospital, a one-and-a-half-hourdrive. Pauline was actually away on holiday but had arranged for another vet to come in for our feisty friend. Pauline is one of the only penguin vets in Canterbury, so, ever volunteering for our wildlife - she had to video conference while the other vet performed the surgery. It wasn’t looking good, turn out miss feisty had lacerations from a small shark and the wounds were infected. But guess what? With the amazing veterinarian skills, they pulled her through.
 Pauline the penguin vet at Willowbank wildlife Hospital with a Kea. |
I was amazed to hear feisty had survived a shark attack!... Or maybe that Shark had survived a penguin attack? The penguin was named Olivia, no idea why, but Pauline continued to look after her once she got back from holiday. Olivia’s eye came right, she wasn’t blind! Pauline was also amazed - thinking she probably wouldn’t survive, but she did and soon became one of her favorite penguins of all time - due to her feisty nature and will to survive. |
| Olivia moved into the expert care of Kristina and Thomas (Christchurch penguin Rehab) for the next steps in recovery. In winter, they care for penguins in their well set up garage/ rehab center. Olivia got to practice walking around on her now healed legs, she had some freedom to roam the garden but her favorite spot was the sunny garage window. |
 Kristina and Olivia the penguin. |
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After a few weeks, it was time for me to come back and get her, she was ready to go home. I drove to Christchurch, did some much-needed shopping, then last stop, picked up Olivia.
| But unfortunately, the carry cage I had brought her in when I first dropped her off to the vet was left at the wildlife hospital, all the way over the other side of town. Kristina had a good selection of boxes. We picked the biggest one there was and pegged a towel over the top, so Olivia would feel nice and calm for the drive… I thought. I sat the box on the passenger seat beside me. It was all good, until I was just coming out of the city. Olivia started trying to make a break for it. I could see the towel bobbing up and down. Then a peg pooped off… and then another, a penguin head popped out of the opening. She gave me a look of contempt and then went back to her escape effort. |
 We taped the box lids higher and pegged a towel over the top. |
I could hear her claws scratching the inside of the box. She was using her beak and head, levering herself up by her chin. I freaked out, I would soon have a penguin running around the van with me, biting my ankles and getting under the foot pedals.
I pulled over on the highway, moved all my shopping around the back, making a barrier between me and the penguin and tightened the towel on top of her box. She growled at me and tried to peck me but luckily for the rest of the drive stayed put.
It was late by the time I got home. I live in Akaroa and Pōhatu is another 45-minute drive. So, I planned to go in the morning, Olivia would spend the night in our penguin rehab center. Kristina had given me some fresh baby Salmon to feed her. I wasn’t looking forward to that experience… and I was right not to. She almost ate my fingers off.
Unfortunately, our rehab area is built just outside our bedroom window… And Olivia, being a penguin was very vocal and active all night. In summer I get use to penguin sounds, but it was winter and we don’t normally have penguins in rehab this time of year. I could hear her calling, jumping, scratching and digging. Thank goodness we have a pretty hardcore enclosure, she was in a hutch, within a bigger mosquito proof enclosure - with a locked door, within a bigger enclosure surround by deer fencing and chicken wire. Fort knocks for penguins you could say. They are really clever birds that are amazing climbers, and great at digging tunnels. I’ve never been so worried about a penguin escaping before – she had me checking on her late at night, my anxiety high from her previous highway escape.
Next morning, she’s there. Looking up at me like… What? Bright eyed and bushy tailed (well as much as a penguin can be bushy tailed).
I had a good carry caged this time for the trip to Pōhatu.
She was actually well behaved this time, seemed a bit like she knew what was going on.
 |
 |
We got to the bay, it was one of those glorious sunny winters’ morning. The sea flat and clear. No giant petrels to be seen (which is a natural predator for penguins), ideal for penguins relaxing in the bay.
I swear she heard the lapping of the waves when I opened up the van door. She started jumping around and scratching in the cage. Ok, hard release it is. Normally we put rehabbed birds in a soft release box on the beach – so we can check on them, feed them if they don’t go and they can choose to go when they are ready… But Olivia was ready.
I put the cage on the beach, opened up the lid and gently tipped it over, hands clear. She promptly jumped out and nonchalantly waddled straight to the sea. She dove under the first small wave, popped up, swam around a bit on the surface, drank some sea water and with the next wave dove under and took off like an underwater missile, leaving a streamlined wake into the big blue. No looking back, no thanks for saving my life.
 |
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See you never!
She had been given a microchip. So, if we find her on our monitoring rounds it’s going to feel bloody good. It’s right on the time of year they start nest building, and my hope is Olivia finds her partner and gets settled for the season.
Older birds are worth rehabbing, these are the experienced birds at raising chicks, it can take some time to learn how to be a good parent.
You get all kinds of penguins through rehab, some are just the timidest gentle souls, some grumpy, some chilled out, but when you get a feisty penguin like Olivia, you just know with their survival instinct and tenacity they are probably at the top of the pecking order and super penguins to have leading the colony.
DoC licensed Penguin Rehabber for the Helps Pōhatu Conservation Trust.