The Penguin Rescue Rehabilitation Centre
The following article is about an animal protection organisation at Katiki Point, a lonely beach on South Island, New Zealand.
- Read the online article, then do the tasks below the text.
1
We, the volunteers at the Penguin Rescue Rehabilitation Centre at Katiki Point, New Zealand, have
2
been caring for penguins for over 20 years, assisting sick, injured and starving individuals to get back
3
on their feet through intensive care. In fact, the yellow-eyed penguin colony at Katiki Point was
4
founded by one of the first patients around 1990. At that time, Diesel Dick was a young bird that got
5
diesel on his feathers and needed to be cleaned – that’s how he got his name. After his successful
6
release, he returned and found a partner called Sweetpea; they were the first pair to settle at Katiki
7
Point. They lived together for many years, producing many chicks that also returned to breed here.
8
They are our founding couple.
9
We are trying to give every penguin a chance to get better so that they can join the breeding population
10
and therefore help raise the worrying numbers of penguins. That’s important because South Island has
11
only about 900 endangered yellow-eyed penguins, 20% of which live at Katiki Point.
12
Our volunteers encourage locals to report any penguins found in places where they may be harmed
13
by dogs or people. They can ring the Penguin Rescue phone number, and a volunteer will pick up
14
the penguin. If it is sick, injured or starving, it will be rehabilitated and then released in the breeding
15
colony. If it does not need care, it is released right away.
16
Penguins are brought to our centre mainly for two reasons:
17
1. Lack of food can affect adults and young penguins and is the most common reason why a penguin
18
is in the rehabilitation centre. Some penguin parents have difficulties feeding their chick(s) at the
19
end of the chick-raising period due to a lack of food. These chicks are taken from the parents to
20
make it easier for them and to give chicks the best possible chance of survival.
21
2. Another reason why a lot of penguins come to Penguin Rescue is that they have been bitten by
22
large fish at sea. The animal is put into the hospital where it has its own nest box but can see and
23
hear its neighbours: They recover much better when they have some penguin company. They
24
remain in small groups in larger garden areas until they are fit for release.
25
Food is a vital part of the recovery programme. The preferred food for the penguins in the rehabilitation
26
centre is salmon, about 20 cm long and weighing 100 – 150 g each. The penguins are fed twice a day
27
with about 400 g of salmon at each meal. If they had the chance, they would eat more. But they don’t
28
get much exercise in the centre, so the volunteers make sure the penguins don’t get too much to eat.
- Tick the correct box and give one piece of evidence by writing down short passages from the text. Do not write line numbers.
1.
The main aim of the Penguin Rescue Rehabilitation Centre is to …
| a) |
|
support hurt or weak penguins. |
| b) |
|
educate the public about penguins. |
| c) |
|
find new places for penguins to live. |
One piece of evidence from the text:
2.
A penguin called Diesel Dick was …
| a) |
|
rescued several times. |
| b) |
|
named after a volunteer. |
| c) |
|
helped at the centre in its early days. |
One piece of evidence from the text:
3.
Diesel Dick and Sweetpea …
| a) |
|
became the centre’s mascots. |
| b) |
|
started a large family in the area. |
| c) |
|
met during Diesel Dick’s first stay at the centre. |
One piece of evidence from the text:
4.
The volunteers at the centre …
| a) |
|
have to focus on young penguins. |
| b) |
|
do their best to care for all penguins. |
| c) |
|
can only help penguins from Katiki Point. |
One piece of evidence from the text:
5.
The number of yellow-eyed penguins on South Island is …
One piece of evidence from the text:
6.
The centre asks people from the area to …
| b) |
|
bring hurt penguins to them. |
| c) |
|
inform them about animals in need. |
One piece of evidence from the text:
7.
The largest number of penguins at the centre …
| a) |
|
lost their families. |
| b) |
|
were attacked by older penguins. |
| c) |
|
couldn’t find enough to eat in the wild. |
One piece of evidence from the text:
8.
For an injured penguin, it is important to …
| a) |
|
have plenty of rest. |
| b) |
|
be around other penguins. |
| c) |
|
learn to be around humans. |
One piece of evidence from the text:
9.
When they feed the penguins, the volunteers must …
| a) |
|
control the amount of food. |
| b) |
|
change the birds’ diet daily. |
| c) |
|
consider each penguin’s size. |
One piece of evidence from the text:
_in_Chester_Zoo,_Cheshire,_England_-_24-06-2015.jpg)
_in_Chester_Zoo,_Cheshire,_England_-_24-06-2015.jpg){kind=link}