'Penguin highways': Family's deep-dive into little blue penguins proves revealing

A recently-arrived American family's deep-dive into all things little blue penguin has revealed increasing numbers on the Taranaki coastline, but also threats the birds are facing.

What started with finding a few tracks on the beach at Ōākura grew to the purchase of a motion-sensing infra-red camera and a commitment to look out for the kororā.

Edyta Materka fell in love with kororā during a visit to Wellington Zoo, but had no idea she would be living among them when her family moved to Ōākura in March.

"There were just these little tracks [on the beach] that looked different from everybody else's. They were going from the sea to land and they didn't pick up from the ground.

"So, they looked like bird prints but then it just looked like they were waddling along and I thought that's strange I think that's a penguin, flightless bird."

Photo: RNZ / Robin Martin

She was soon spotting penguin prints everywhere.

"Once I really started looking into it I noticed there were different sections of footprints around here and that they were going in twos and fours sometimes.

"Sometimes they were completely alone, but there were penguin highways along this beach. I mean I just wanted to know more about them."

Kororā footprints.

Photo: Supplied / Edyta Materka

Quick on the uptake, Edyta's partner Neil Anderson thought he could help with that.

"Edyta dropped some subtle hints of what she wanted for Mother's Day it had to do with penguins and capturing them on camera.

"So, I just got this trail camera and we just set it up that it captures photos when it detects motion at night. It blasts them with infra-red light and takes these cool black and white videos."

Edyta explained that initially the penguins proved elusive.

"We had cats and dogs at night but mostly cats and then we started to put the camera right by the water and so one of the days Neil was screaming 'penguins, we've got penguins'.

"And so, we see these little two penguins and then the next day too there was one penguin going by, so we know we can get footage there."

Kororā numbers are rising on the coast, but they are vulnerable to cats and dogs.

Photo: RNZ / Robin Martin

Edyta said the couple, who had been liaising with the Ngāmotu Marine Society on what was fast becoming a project, wanted to make it a learning experience for their children Felix, 8, Margaux, 6, and Casimiro, 3.

"It's really about them and them learning about citizen science and the process of conducting research."

She found a way of getting them involved.

"We've got footprints, so why don't we make a big sign of a penguin and then my daughter, Margaux, said 'we'll be the kororā penguin guardians'."

Felix was chief video checker.

"Like, over a couple of weeks of finding that cat over and over again or sometimes nothing my mum said we found penguins on the camera and we got really excited when we found them.

"That night we put the camera in the same place and we found four penguins at once that was very exciting."

Felix Materka-Andserson, 8, positions the trail camera for its night's work.

Photo: RNZ / Robin Martin

Emily Roberts from Wild For Taranaki said kororā numbers had been trending up on the coast.

"It's great that there's so much more predator control now around the coast, community trappers ... Predator Free Taranaki are doing a great job.

"It could be due to availability of food sources, so there's more food out around here than other parts, so the kororā are coming down here.

"It could also be raised awareness and people being a bit more aware of not destroying kororā habitat."

Wild for Taranaki's Emily Roberts.

Photo: RNZ / Robin Martin

Roberts said the video also served as a timely reminder for pet owners to keep a close watch on their animals.

"With cats it's crucial to keep them in at night, with dogs it's really important to keep them in sight, in control and away from coastal vegetation and rockwalls where the penguins live.

"Last year there were at lest five dead penguins reported locally, some of them showing quite bad injuries from dogs."

Felix had got the message.

"I feel a bit worried because they're like endangered."

He knew what people had to do.

"Like, not unleash their dog and not, like, just throwing trash."

The Department of Conservation classified kororā as at risk - declining, which meant while they were not on the brink of extinction, the overall population was trending downwards.

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