New Zealand: Photos from Tiritiri Matangi Island

Tiritiri Matangi Island is an open preserve. They only allow 150 people per day on the island tour. The island has been set aside as a place for native New Zealand species to make a home. Mammal predators have been eradicated, which allows the birds and the reptiles to flourish. This was our first time seeing a blue penguin in its burrow. We decided to join as supporters, and I will make a $1 donation for every “Polly Penguin Wants to Fly” book I sell here or at Amazon.

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New Zealand: A Short Survey of New Zealand Penguins

Penguins are funny creatures. As my wife says they often look like they are running to hug you. My second favorite penguins are from the movie “Mary Poppins, and that’s where I got the idea as a penguin for my creativity mascot. Those penguins deliver fun, service and a dance-off with Dick Van Dyke before it was a thing. (Who would win in a dance off: the Mary Poppins penguins or Starlord?) From there, it was a short step to our stuffed penguins.

There is only a small group of penguins in the Galapagos Islands that live north of the equator in the wild. All of the other wild penguins in the world live south of the equator. Of the 18 or 19 species penguins in the world, New Zealand is home to three: the korora, the hoiho, and the tawaki. Knowing that, we, of course, are going to schedule some time to try to find some penguins in the wild. (We hear they are smelly, but we don’t care. They just look like fun to hang around near!)

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