Penguin Rehab & Release

17/10/2026

We have some news to share from Penguin Rehab and Release, and a new face for you all to meet!

First, an update on our beautiful Emerald.
Emerald continues to be a wonderful penguin to have in care, but recently we have been concerned to see her progress slow, particularly in regaining her range of movement and the use of her affected nerves. Understandably, Emerald has also seemed a little disheartened, and we have seen less of the determination she usually brings to her rehabilitation.

We have also noticed signs that she is feeling lonely. For quite some time now, Emerald has been our only penguin in care, and she has been spending much of her time in front of the mirrors in her enclosure.

Adult penguins recognise their reflections, and we often see them preening in front of a mirror, much as we might look in a mirror while washing our face. Emerald clearly understands that her reflection isn't another penguin, but this was the closest substitute for companionship we have been able to offer her.

Emerald should never have been in this position of loneliness. She should have had the company of Iphogenia, but as many of you will remember, cruel bureaucracy robbed Iphogenia of her life and Emerald of the companionship she so desperately needed.

We knew that having another penguin to preen alongside, swim with and simply share her space could make a real difference to Emerald's wellbeing and motivation. So, rarely for us, we found ourselves wishing for a penguin to come into care. Ordinarily, we wish with all our hearts that every penguin stays safe and healthy in the wild, never needing our help. But Emerald needed a friend.

While we waited and hoped for a companion, we also adjusted our approach to Emerald's physiotherapy. Rather than allowing her to continue to be completely in charge of her own therapy, we began taking a more active role in guiding her through stretches and gently helping her turn her head from side to side.

Watching these exercises can sometimes look confronting, and it may appear as though Emerald's neck is being twisted uncomfortably. However, she tolerates the therapy remarkably well, with little more than an occasional complaint, and we have seen a significant improvement in her range of movement. This is encouraging evidence that the exercises are helping.

We are also working more directly with Emerald in the pool. By holding her in the water and encouraging her to use her strength to pull away from her carer’s hands, we are helping her to rebuild her strength and coordination.

The cold weather has made Emerald’s aqua therapy particularly challenging. Emerald is not waterproof, and the low overnight temperatures mean that the pool water is staying very cold so she can become chilled very quickly. When this happens, her coordination deteriorates and her nerve damage makes movement even more difficult. Her swimming sessions therefore need to remain short, making every precious minute in the water count.

Little by little, Emerald is rebuilding her nerve pathways and regaining her dexterity and control. Every small improvement takes effort, and she is working hard for each and every one of them. We are incredibly proud of her.

Unfortunately, while we were hoping for a suitable companion, the calls we received were heartbreaking. We were hearing about penguins who had died or were dying with symptoms consistent with highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) — penguins we simply could not safely help.
Then, finally, we received the call we had been waiting for: a penguin in need of rescue, but showing no signs or symptoms of HPAI.

This rescue also marked a new experience for us, as we carried it out under the full HPAI protocols, wearing the required PPE and following enhanced biosecurity precautions.

Thankfully, our first rescue under these protocols was a relatively straightforward one. The penguin had found in a porch, displaced from the rest of the colony, but showing now signs of disease. This gave us a safe opportunity to work through our procedures and iron out the practical details of conducting a rescue.

The penguin was brought safely into quarantine at Penguin Rehab and Release. Following a thorough assessment, there were no concerns to suggest any symptoms consistent with HPAI, but she was very dehydrated and significantly underweight.

Even so, we were extremely careful. With Emerald already in care, protecting her from any possible introduction of infection was absolutely paramount. We maintained an increased level of biosecurity and took every precaution to ensure there was no opportunity for the virus to enter Emerald's enclosure.

With each passing day of quarantine, and no signs of HPAI developing, our excitement grew. Could this finally be the friend Emerald needed?
Once quarantine was successfully completed, our new arrival was ready to move into the enclosure. But before she could join Emerald, there was one important thing left to do: give her a name!
So, everyone, please welcome Betty!

And the best news of all? Emerald and Betty took to each other almost instantly!

Emerald's familiarity with the enclosure and her confidence in her surroundings have helped Betty settle into her new space and adjust to the routines of life in the enclosure. The two are getting along swimmingly, and we couldn't be happier to see them sharing their space.
We hope that having a companion will give Emerald the encouragement and motivation she needs to continue working on her rehabilitation.

There is still a long way to go for Emerald, and we will continue to work patiently with her as she rebuilds her strength and control. But seeing these two penguins together, after such a long period of isolation for Emerald, has been a wonderful moment for all of us.

Here's to Emerald and Betty — may this be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Thank you to the following people who have been supporting Emerald’s rehabilitation through adoption - Thankyou Charlotte, Trudy, Cheryl, Rebecca, Milla, Robyn, Renae, Matthew, Breezy Thyme Travel, Kristine, and Yana.

You too can support Emerald or Betty through adoption.
It only takes 2 simple steps:
First, pay your $30 or $50 adoption fee through the PayPal link or by direct deposit.
For a $30 donation, you will be emailed a standard adoption certificate featuring the penguin of your choosing. For a $50 donation, you will receive a gold level adoption certificate.
Bank Account Details
Account Name: Penguin Rehab & Release
BSB: 067-400
Account Number 10560099

Second, email [email protected] with proof of your payment and let us know which penguin you would like to adopt and whose name you would like to appear on the adoption certificate. You will be emailed back a pdf of your completed adoption certificate.

25/09/2026

A big thank you to ARC for their donation of N95 masks. Your support helps us keep our volunteers safe as we prepare for H5N1.

16/09/2026

We're holding an Information Evening for potential new volunteers. If you are local and interested in finding out what volunteering at Penguin Rehab & Release is like, send us an email at [email protected] and book your place at the Information Evening.

16/09/2026

Unpacking donated supplies from our friends at ARC always feels like Christmas. Thankyou, ARC!

05/09/2026

A small team of volunteers from Penguin Rehab and Release have just returned from the International Penguin Conference on Phillip Island — and we’re coming home more inspired, more informed, and more passionate than ever about the work we do.

The conference gave us an incredible opportunity to learn from leading penguin researchers, wildlife veterinarians and rehabilitation specialists working with penguins around the world.

While there was plenty of discussion about all the penguin species, there was naturally a strong focus on Little Penguins, with Phillip Island providing a pretty spectacular backdrop surrounded by thousands of them.

During all of the presentations from all of the experts one message came through again and again:

Penguins everywhere are in trouble.

Even populations that were once considered large and stable are experiencing significant declines. Overfishing, climate change and other environmental pressures are affecting penguins around the world.

And every time a penguin population is properly surveyed after years without a comprehensive count, the results are revealing just how much things have changed.

That is particularly concerning for us here in Tasmania.

Tasmania’s Little Penguin population hasn’t had a comprehensive population count in decades.

We don’t know exactly how many penguins we have left.

What we do know is that our local colonies have experienced a series of difficult breeding seasons.

And now they’re also facing bird flu.

That’s a lot of pressure on a species that already has enough challenges to contend with.

At Penguin Rehab and Release, we’ve always focused on helping the individual penguin in front of us. Every bird matters. Every successful rehabilitation and release matters.

But caring for large numbers of penguins also gives us something else: a window into what is happening to the wider population.

We see trends. We see changes. We notice when something doesn’t look right.

And after IPC 2026, we are more determined than ever to explore how we can use that knowledge to contribute to research, conservation and the long-term future of Tasmania’s Little Penguins.

We were also incredibly fortunate to be invited to tour the Phillip Island Nature Parks rehabilitation centre. Their team cares for Little Penguins as well as a wide range of other wildlife, and we had some fantastic conversations about rehabilitation challenges, penguin care and our respective HPAI biosecurity protocols.

It was incredibly reassuring to discover just how closely our own biosecurity practices align with rehabilitation facilities across Australia and around the world. Even more importantly, speaking with people who have already lived through HPAI outbreaks has given us valuable firsthand knowledge and reassurance about the importance — and effectiveness — of strong biosecurity.

One of the most valuable parts of the conference was connecting with rehabilitators from SANCOB working with African Penguins. Their experience with HPAI, which reached their region well before it arrived here, gave us the opportunity to learn firsthand about the challenges they faced, what they would do differently, and how effective biosecurity practices can be.

We came to IPC wanting to learn the latest evidence-based approaches to penguin health, behaviour, rehabilitation, and to build relationships with people doing this work around the world.
We’ve come home with all of that and so much more.

Most importantly, we’re bringing that knowledge back to Tasmania to benefit the penguins in our care.

A huge thank you to everyone who contributed to our conference fund and helped make this opportunity possible and also to Burnie City Council through their Environmental Grant 2024 to 2026.

Professional development opportunities like the International Penguin Conference are invaluable to our team, but ultimately, the goal is simple:
Help more penguins.

04/09/2026

If you haven't already signed our petition, please do so.
No financial contribution is necessary, but we do need your voice to help speak on behalf of our birds and all the other wildlife that is currently being failed by the Tasmanian government.

Test, Don’t Guess: Quarantine and Live HPAI Testing of Tasmania’s Seabirds

01/09/2026

We’ve seen your messages, your comments and your questions about HPAI, about Emerald, and about how we are going to keep the penguins in our care safe.

We’ve wanted to give you answers.

The honest truth is that we are still waiting for many of those answers ourselves.

For more than two years, we have been preparing for HPAI to reach Tasmania. We have been working hard to put the right biosecurity measures in place and trying to establish with the Department how wildlife rehabilitation can safely continue during an outbreak.

For the past two months, we have been asking some very basic questions which we urgently need answered.

And getting those answers has taken far longer, and required far more effort, than we believe it should.

Now HPAI is here.

We are in north-west Tasmania, in an area where positive cases are being detected, and this means these questions are no longer something we can plan for somewhere down the track. They are part of our everyday reality.

We know that one of the biggest concerns for our community is Emerald.

We know how much you care about her. We do too.

Everything we are doing is about giving Emerald, and every other penguin who comes into our care, the best possible chance of staying safe, recovering and eventually returning to the wild.

Our biosecurity protocols are firmly in place. They are designed to provide the highest possible level of protection for the penguins in our rehabilitation enclosure, where Emerald is currently being cared for.

But there is an important piece of the puzzle that we are still missing: testing.

We need to know whether penguins coming into care can be tested for HPAI while they are safely quarantined.

This is one of the very basic we have been asking the Department.

We are still waiting for clear answers.

We have even asked that, if the government is unwilling or unable to cover the cost of testing, we be allowed to arrange and pay for the testing ourselves.

And we know you.

We know that if funding became the obstacle, this community would rally around these penguins. We would find a way.

We are not asking for biosecurity rules to be relaxed. Quite the opposite.

We want to work within a robust system that allows us to protect the penguins properly. We have offered to work with the department, have our facility inspected and provide our HPAI biosecurity plan.

We have been trying to work through these issues privately and constructively for a long time.

Following the devastating outcome for Iphigenia, we raised detailed concerns with the Department, including the lack of a live-testing pathway that could have allowed her to remain safely quarantined while her disease status was established.

On 10 August, after receiving our latest detailed correspondence, Biosecurity Tasmania advised us that the Department needed additional time to consider the issues and provide an appropriate response.

We understood.

But we are now at the point where we simply cannot afford to keep waiting.

The Department has said it has been preparing for HPAI for years. We have been preparing too.

And after two years of planning and two months of urgently seeking answers to fundamental questions, we need those answers now.

We also want you to know that we will continue to keep you informed.

We know it can be frustrating when we don't have answers to give you. Please understand that our silence has never meant that we aren't asking the questions. We have been asking them — repeatedly.

We have been working behind the scenes because our priority has always been doing what is best for the penguins, and because we wanted to give the Department every opportunity to work with us constructively.

But HPAI is here.

And the penguins cannot wait.

We will continue doing everything we can to protect Emerald and the other penguins in our care.

We will continue asking the difficult questions.

We will continue pushing for the practical systems needed to keep them safe.

And we will continue to be honest with you about where things stand.

Thank you for caring about Emerald. Thank you for caring about every little penguin that comes through our doors. And thank you for standing beside us while we work through this.

We are incredibly grateful to have this community behind us.

We just want the same thing you do: to give these penguins every possible chance to survive, recover and return safely to the wild.

If you'd like to join us in asking the government to commit to live testing, please sign our petition: https://c.org/qQz9mgC7Bv

31/08/2026

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Thank you to everyone who bought tickets to our raffle and helped us build up our bank account a little in preparation for what will no doubt be another expensive season. After selling raffle tickets for the past 2 months, both online and in person, we drew the raffle last week at the Penguin B**r Co. Bingo Night. Our winners have been contacted and given their prizes.

Thank you so much to our amazing sponsors for donating the raffle prizes. And congratulations to all our winners.

Prizes and winners (in no particular order):
Leven River Cruises - Ulverstone Tasmania Birdwatching cruise - 2 Tickets
Winner: Lee

$250 Voucher Lila's Tree Gallery, Stanley
Winner: G. Nolan

$100 Dining Voucher, The Cove Tasmania, Devonport
Winner: Hayley

$100 Accommodation Voucher, The Cove Tasmania, Devonport
Winner: Hilda

$150 Accommodation Voucher, The Cove Tasmania, Devonport
Winner: Dave

1 Night Stay at Horizon Deluxe Apartments, Stanley
Winner: Emma

Pennicott Wilderness Journeys - 2 Cruise Tickets
Winner: Crystal

The Julie Burgess - Tall Ship Experiences- 2 Tickets
Winner: Cat

27/08/2026

This morning, The Advocate reported a significant development in the story of the proposed $35 million hotel at Camdale.

Developer Errol Stewart has described the project as “dead in the water”, telling The Advocate that the penguin colony had become a much bigger issue than he expected and that concerns about the potential impact on the colony played a significant role in the decision not to pursue the project.

We are incredibly grateful to everyone in our community who helped make sure the penguins had a voice.

Thank you to every person who raised their voice for the penguins. Every email, phone call, share and show of support helped demonstrate just how much our community values these incredible little animals and the habitat they depend on.

We also want to make something very clear: we at Penguin Rehab and Release are not anti-development in principle, but the advise that Errol Stewart was initially given by his “experts” that the impact of the proposed development on the Camdale penguin colony could be managed was incorrect.

We understand that responsible development is an important part of our community's future. In fact, we would have been happy to see development considered at the alternative Cooee Point site, provided there was an appropriate management plan in place for the penguins.

The colony at Cooee Point is much smaller and less densely populated than the colony at Camdale, and we believe that with careful planning and appropriate safeguards, development there could potentially have been accommodated while still protecting the penguins.

We would also like to see the Camdale land returned to the hands of Burnie City Council, where we believe it should have remained in the first place.

We are very pleased to see that Burnie City Council is approaching the proposed sale of Cooee Point in a very different manner rather than the abrupt manner in which the Camdale land was sold, without public consultation or notice.

We believe decisions about significant public land should be made transparently, with the community given an opportunity to have its say.

Our position has never been about saying “no” to development. It has always been about where and how development happens.
We don't celebrate the loss of a development opportunity. We celebrate the protection of the penguins and the power of a community willing to stand up for them.

Thank you to everyone who stood with them.
Your voices mattered.

And whatever happens next, we hope this helps demonstrate that responsible development, transparent decision-making and wildlife protection can — and should — go hand in hand.

22/08/2026

Watch gorgeous Emerald swimming from a different perspective