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Loading...Oil Spill Penguins Cleaned Up, Sent Back To Wild – VIDEO
Penguins rescued from a massive oil spill off New Zealand have been set free after being cleaned up and nursed back to health. They were set free on Mt. Maunganui beach.
The 49 birds are among 343 little blue penguins that have been cleaned of oil since cargo ship Rena hit Astrolabe Reef near Tauranga on October 5th, spilling 400 tons of fuel into the ocean and killing more than 2,000 sea birds.
Smallest Species Of Penguin In The World
The blue penguins, the smallest species of penguin in the world, were found a few days after the maritime catastrophe which hit the once pristine beaches of Mount Manganui and Papamoa.
Oil leaked from the Liberian-flagged Rena, stranded 12 nautical miles off the coast, created a three-mile (5km) slick.
The flightless birds that survived spent six weeks being looked after and cleaned by experts.
Penguins Fitted With Microchips
The penguins have been fitted with microchips so they can be monitored after their release.
Watch this adorable video of the release of the penguins here:
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Photo Credit: wilkintj
Read more: blue penguins, microchips, mt. maunganui beach, new zealand, rena, tauranga
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Thanks for a great article
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When I was in Norway. they had garbage burning plants. The smoke from the stack was white and there…
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134 comments
+ add your ownThank you for sharing.
very sweet
so glad they were able to get some of them back out into the wild, but so sad that they spill happened and killed so much sea life yet again...
CUTE!
so cute
As I watched these little guys gun it for the surf, I could hear them let out a huge victorious..." WERE FREEEEEEEE, THANK YOU HUMANS!! Now we've just got to steer clear of humans on large boats!!
so glad they could save these little cuties and release them... they looked so happy.
They looked so happy! They were so adorable!
Aww, how nice!
Oh my gosh, they're so cute!!!
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