Great Annual West Coast Blue Penguin Count 2020

Get involved, discover your beach and share your observations!
We want to know where blue penguins are up and down the coast so as to best advocate for their protection - and you can help!
An early morning beach walk between 17th and 22nd October 2020 looking for penguin tracks will remind you how wonderful our coastline is and help us gain a clearer picture of where blue penguins are and, over time, an indication of trends in populations.
You can do as many counts as you like during the count over six days, in the same area or in different areas, as short or long a stretch of beach as you wish.
Penguins are a little like canaries in coal mines - they are indicators of the health of their environment, both on land and at sea.
Please think about your safety when you do your count. We have picked a time when tides are low in the early morning, when it will be easiest to spot the straight lines of penguin tracks, but consider the tides, the waves, the weather and even marine mammals (give seals plenty of space) as you go for your walk, and let someone know where you are going and when you'll be back.
You can check your local tide times here: https://tides.niwa.co.nz/
The West Coast Penguin Trust's aim is to conserve the blue penguins, Fiordland crested penguins, other threatened seabirds and their habitat on the West Coast, and you can help through this project.
You can find out more about the Trust at http://www.westcoastpenguintrust.org.nz and more details about this project, including a guide to identifying penguin tracks.
Thank you, and have fun! less ↑