The Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust is one of the organizations in New Zealand that are working hands-on to help this endangered penguin species survive. They started this mission back in 1987 as New Zealand’s first single-species Conservation Trust.

Through the years they have developed a community and systems to help protect and rehabilitate Yellow-eyed Penguins. They focus on many aspects that affect this species; Habitat Conservation, Predator Control, Rehabilitation, and more!

I had the privilege to ask, Trudi Webster, PhD, the Conservation Science Advisor from the Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust a few questions about her work and the penguins. I SO appreciated her dedication, humor and great insight into why it is so important to protect this species. I hope you enjoy this Q&A as much as I did!

Q: How long have you been working with the Yellow-eyed Penguins and what does your organization do to help this species?

A: “I have been working with yellow-eyed penguins for four years (and before that with marine mammals). The Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust does a range of work to help hoiho, from day to day monitoring and health checks to ensure that birds survive, to maintaining their habitat, working with researchers to investigate threats, and more long-term working on strategies to try and bring about wider environmental change.”

Q: Why are the Yellow-eyed Penguins important to New Zealand and to you?

A: “Yellow-eyed penguins are only found in New Zealand and they are a really important indicator for what is going on in our environment. Basically they are telling us that all is not well! Their numbers have been declining steadily over the past decade or more and there are now only about 168 breeding pairs on mainland New Zealand. They face a wide variety of threats both on the land and in the sea including invasive mammal predators, fisheries, dogs, human disturbance, pollution, climate change, and disease.”

Q: Do you have any interesting or funny stories about interacting with the Yellow-eyed Penguins?

A: “Working outside with yellow-eyed penguins is not particularly glamorous – lots of time is spent crawling on your hands and knees through bushes, being stung by tree nettle, or being pooped on or bitten by the birds themselves! Hoiho are not as cute and cuddly as they look! But I don’t blame them – they have a lot to contend with!”

Q: What is one thing people might not expect to learn about this species?

A: “Yellow-eyed penguins are amazing swimmers – they can dive down to 160 metres (~525 feet) and can swim up to 50 kilometres (~31 miles) offshore in search of food!”

Q: What is your favorite part of working with Yellow-eyed Penguins?

A: “Getting to release birds back into the wild has to be top of the list! Having to pick up birds and take them to rehab because they are underweight, or to the hospital because they are sick or injured can be distressing, but releasing them once they are well again is such a joy!”

Q: Why should people care about this species? And how can they help?

A: “This species is not found anywhere else in the world, so if we lose it from New Zealand we lose it forever. People can really help by keeping their dogs on a leash when they are at the beach particularly along the south-east coast of the South Island (p. If they see an injured bird they can call the DOC hotline (0800 DOCHOT). Any money raised will go directly to helping to provide monitoring and health checks for these precious birds.”

Learn MORE about yellow-eyed penguins by checking out my post ‘About Yellow-eyed Penguins’.

Make sure to follow the Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust (Facebook and Instagram) to get updates on their work and what the penguins are up to.

And make sure to snag your very own Yellow-eyed Penguin print! 50% will go directly to the organization Trudi works with (Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust) to help the penguins!

If you’ve never heard of a Yellow-eyed penguin or learned something new from this Q&A with Trudi, comment below! I’d love to hear from you!