Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Al Mayadeen correspondent to southern Lebanon: Israeli warplanes launched a raid on the Ksar Zaatar neighborhood in western Nabatieh.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Gaza: The tower destroyed by the Israeli occupation in Gaza includes media offices, including Al Mayadeen's bureau.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Gaza: Four fetuses and three premature babies died at Nasser Medical Complex due to malnutrition
Lebanese Ministry of Health: One person was killed in an Israeli airstrike on a car in the town of Burj Qalawieh, south Lebanon.
Al Mayadeen correspondent: The first ship of the Maghreb fleet delivering aid to break the siege on Gaza departs from the port of Gammarth in Tunisia.
Channel 12: Airspace closed at Ramon Airport due to fears of drone infiltration
IOF Spokesperson: Sirens sounded over an aircraft infiltration in the Bir Ora area, and details are being examined
Drone infiltration sirens sound north of the Gulf of Aqaba
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Gaza: The Israeli occupation carried out five extremely violent raids on the western areas of Gaza City
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Gaza: The Israeli occupation carried out major bombings in the Gaza Strip, the most violent since October 7

Climate change kills hundreds of penguins in New Zealand

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 14 Jun 2022 12:44
  • 1 Shares
4 Min Read

Locals in New Zealand have found hundreds of dead kororā penguins on the country's shores, with scientific evidence linking the mass deaths to climate change.

  • x
  • One of the penguins photographed on the coasts of New Zealand after starving to death
    One of the penguins photographed on the coasts of New Zealand after starving to death

Locals in New Zealand have gathered some 183 penguins they had found at the Ninety Mile Beach last week for later investigation in what appears to be the latest development in a phenomenon of dead penguins washing up on the island nation's beaches in vast numbers.

The kororā, a species of penguin characterized by its glossy blue color and known by the locals as little blue penguins, is the smallest species of the penguin family in the world, and they are native to New Zealand, but their population in the country is diminishing. The Department of Conservation classes the kororā as "at-risk" and "declining".

The wave of deaths has shocked locals as, over the past few months, hundreds have washed up on the shore and were found decaying on the Ninety Mile Beach and the Cable Bay.

  • A dead penguin on the shore of Northland, New Zealand
    A dead penguin on the shore of Northland, New Zealand

Local residents have photographed a dead flock of 109 penguins at Ninety Mile Beach at the end of May in addition to the 183 dead found the same week as more than 100 were found at the Cable Bay. A resident found 40 dead at Tokerau Beach in the Northland region in mid-May, while the DoC received reports that at least 20 had died on the same beach at the start of the month.

There are many theories surrounding the events of mass deaths, with locals pondering whether they had been caught and dumped by fishermen, died due to the quality of the waters, or caught a fatal disease, such as avian malaria.

Related News

Cutting air pollution could save 30,000 US lives by 2030

Study links Iberian wildfires to climate change, 40x higher risk

A DoC principal science advisor specializing in the field of sea birds, Graham Taylor, believes that more than 500 penguins have washed ashore since the start of May, projecting that the figure could be nearing 1,000. He also noted that it was difficult to give an accurate death toll, mainly due to the locals finding and burying many of them.

Despite the theories, scientists from the Ministry of Primary Studies who tested the bodies for diseases in a bid to find the reason behind their deaths concluded that the kororā had starved to death.

All of the bodies found on the sandy beaches of New Zealand were found extremely underweight, weighing less than their average size of 800-1000 grams.

"There was just no body fat on them. There was hardly any muscle to show. When they get to that stage of emaciation, they can't dive," Taylor said, noting that they would die of starvation or hypothermia due to the lack of blubber that keeps them warm.

However, Wellington underlined that the kororā were not starving due to overfishing. Instead, the main reason behind them not finding enough nutrients is the food chain disruption created by climate change, which is creating waters too hot for the fish they feed on.

The hottest ocean temperatures in recorded history were set last year, making for the sixth consecutive year that this record had been broken, as the fish that the kororā feeds on either go deeper in search of cooler waters or leave the area entirely because of the insufferable living conditions.

"This little species [of penguin] can dive down to 20 or 30 meters routinely, but it’s not that good at diving a lot deeper than that," Taylor says, as quoted by The Guardian. Hot water temperatures through winter had likely kept the fish out of reach.

It is not uncommon for mass deaths of sea birds to occur, as severe storms, heatwaves, or weather events can result in birds washing ashore in high numbers, but the frequency of the deaths is uncommon. 

Previously, deaths in these numbers would occur maybe once a decade. Over the past decade, Taylor said there have been at least three years where mass deaths were recorded, and this frequency is on an increase.

  • Climate change
  • Penguins
  • New Zealand
STOP THE HEAT: A Climate Change Coverage

STOP THE HEAT: A Climate Change Coverage

Most Read

The damaged building in the Katara neighborhood, Doha, Qatar, September 9, 2025 (Social media)

Hamas delegation survives Israeli assassination attempt in Qatar

  • Politics
  • 9 Sep 2025
Pro-"Israel" conservative Charlie Kirk shot during Utah speech

American far-right activist Charlie Kirk shot dead during Utah speech

  • US & Canada
  • 11 Sep 2025
Uprising against Volker Turk at the Human Rights Council over Gaza.

Uprising against Volker Turk at the Human Rights Council over Gaza

  • Politics
  • 12 Sep 2025
A screengrab from the ad played on Fox News. (X Screengrab)

Fox airs ad warning Trump not to let Netanyahu 'play' him on Gaza

  • US & Canada
  • 11 Sep 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
President Nicolas Maduro gestures to supporters during the inauguration of a monument in China's honor on the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, September 3, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Maduro warns of threats, urges 'battle for truth' to defend Venezuela

Damage is seen after an Israeli strike targeted a compound that hosted Hamas' political leadership in Doha, Qatar, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Gambrell)
Politics

Netanyahu informed Trump before deadly attack in Doha: Reports

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hold a joint press conference at the Prime Minister's Office, during Rubio's visit, in occupied al-Quds, occupied Palestine, Monday, September 15, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Netanyahu warns of Israeli isolation, calls to boost self-reliance

Spain axes €700Mln arms deals with 'Israel' over Gaza genocide
Politics

Spain axes €700Mln arms deals with 'Israel' over Gaza genocide

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS