November 26, 2006
Penguin Population Plummets Due to Overfishing
Humboldt Penguins that breed along the desert coast of Peru and Chile are in trouble. Once numbering over 20 million birds, the species is now one-tenth its former size due to overfishing in the region. Listed as Vulnerable to Extinction on the IUCN Red List, Humboldt Penguins feed in nutrient-rich waters which abound with anchovy and other small fish. This very abundance has attracted commercial fishing fleets that are poorly regulated by the Chilean and Peruvian governments. As fish stocks dwindle, the penguins are failing to breed in ever greater numbers.
The Brookfield Zoo, together with the St. Louis Zoo and the Philadelphia Zoo, has a flourishing Humboldt captive-breeding program, and are helping to monitor the penguin population in the wild. The zoos are also helping pay for guards to prevent poaching of guano, birds, and eggs. They have also petitioned to have one of the main Peruvian breeding sites, Punta San Juan, designated as a Marine Reserve. For more information visit: http://www.brookfieldzoo.org/0.asp?nSection=10&PageID=194&nLinkID=283