KRUSHAN FOUNDATION: Crucial in assisting, keeping our African Penguins safe!

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This article was originally published here–https://dict.org.za/blog/krushan-foundation-crucial-in-assisting-keeping-our-african-penguins-safe/ Kruger and Shannon du Plessis from the KruShan Foundation are two friends of the African Penguin and Seabird Sanctuary. They have assisted with numerous previous donations towards the African Penguin and Seabird Sanctuary, including buying two gas fridges to keep the penguin meals frozen during heavy load-shedding in 2023. … Read more

We’re Growing—Welcome Xolani

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We’re ending the year on quite a high! We’re so pleased to announce that Xolani Lawo has agreed to serve as a KruShan Foundation Advisor. Xolani has been working with endangered African penguins for 16 years and is well-known as the “penguin whisperer.” His extensive experience with African penguins and seabirds began in the Eastern … Read more

We’re Growing—Welcome Pinkey

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We are so happy to announce that Pinkey Ngewu has joined us as an Advisor.After serving as a nature guide for several years, Pinkey became involved with African penguin rescue and conservation in 2015 when she joined the Dyer Island Conservation Trust, where she serves as manager for conservation, fundraising, and administration, including the African … Read more

Artificial Nests Help African Penguins Beat the Heat

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African penguins didn’t have a homelessness problem and were happily laying their eggs in burrows dug into centuries-old layers of their excrement until the 1800s when traders discovered that African penguin guano was an excellent fertilizer and shipped it to the United Kingdom. The guano burrows had provided African penguins with these benefits.  • A … Read more

Hunger Crisis—How KruShan Foundation Ensured over 350 African Penguin Chicks Won’t Starve

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One of our partners, the Dyer Island Conservation Trust, cares for approximately 350 African penguin chicks at the African Penguin and Seabird Sanctuary (APSS) between October and January. Dr. Liezl Pretorius, a zoologist and veterinarian at APSS, explains that during this time, African penguin parents endure their annual molt, rendering their feather coat non-waterproof. Consequently, … Read more

African Penguin Parenting Perils

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Picture the scene. They were a perfect pair, their appetites partially satiated by feeding on fish. Yet, now their chicks squawk with hunger, and their energy is depleting. African penguins mate for life and are good parents, yet they often face a cruel dilemma. Each October/November marks the end of the African penguin breeding season, … Read more

When Does 1 Equal 45?

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When we help rear an African penguin chick or rehabilitate an injured African penguin, that act has a long-term ripple effect that increases the population of African penguin colonies. Indeed, every African penguin counts. The loss of 45 (conservative estimate) future African penguins makes it all the more sad when an injured African penguin doesn’t … Read more

More African Penguin Chicks? Yes Please!

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Protecting the endangered African penguin is an urgent matter requiring immediate action. Just 1% of African penguins remain in the wild—a horrific decline. Experts predict that they may go extinct in the wild as soon as 2035 without intervention. One of the ways we help fortify the declining African penguin population is through our support of … Read more