Phillip Island Penguins

Back on the Australian mainland we made our way to Phillip Island. We bought tickets to see the little penguins come in at night and congregated at the penguin centre as the sun went down. We usually like our wildlife viewing to be more spontaneous but it turned out to be a great experience. The centre was very informative and it had little windows where you could peek down into nesting tunnels where 1 or 2 little penguins would be preening or sleeping. They're actually called 'little penguins' and I think sometimes 'fairy penguins'. They aren't much larger than a seagull.

We walked the boardwalk down to the ocean and sat in the stands. Our front seats were level with the beach and we were soon rewarded with a flock of penguins coming up over the dunes. They waddled along and some headed to the nesting holes that dotted the hills while others stopped to dry and preen eachother right in front of us. They didn't seem to mind the people and dim lights at all. We weren't allowed to take photos because the flash might scare them.
During the next hour a group of them would waddle up about every 5 or 10 minutes, coming in from the ocean to nest and mate. This time of year the nesting and mating was false, apparently. I wonder if the penguins know that.

As the numbers dwindled we headed up the walkway following little groups and individuals as they waddled along looking for nest sites and mates, calling and listening for family members. One fella was calling loudly from beside his tunnel and was finally rewarded with his mate. They put on quite an educational display for our giggling girls. Mercedes informed Grammy later: 'I got an education!'

The next morning we checked at the information centre for penguin numbers the night before: 613! They count them every night. We felt sad about how these cute little guys get eaten by sharks. Penguin nuggets.