Surf's Up - Phillip Island Penguin appeal

A conservation group in Australia is calling on knitting enthusiasts to donate small woolly jumpers for sick penguins.  Phillip Island’s Penguin Foundation uses the jumpers to help rehabilitate birds that have been affected by oil spills or similar leaks from fishing boats.

Knits for Nature, a program run by the foundation, has created up to 300 different designs over the years thanks to its team of dedicated volunteers but is always in need of more. And in fact they even run a competition for the best.

The winning entry : 'Underwater with Octopus' by Chantal Cordey. 

‘There’s a lot of hidden creativity out there,’ explained Lyn Blom, an employee of the foundation.

   

'Penguin Books' by Denise Franklin.                'Super Penguin' by Monica Novak

The jumpers help to keep the penguins warm and also prevent them trying to clean the toxic oil away with their beaks.  ‘If somebody puts oil into the sea… a little penguin swimming along pops up to the surface and finds out he’s come up in a circle of yukky stuff,’ Blom told ABC News.  

         

                      'Tropical Beach' by Sylvia van der Peet.                 'Fishbone' by Sue Arnold

‘The first thing he wants to do is get to shore because he loses all of his waterproofness.’  Oil mats and separates penguins’ feathers which damages their natural insulation and waterproofing systems.

I was fortunate enough to visit Phillip Island near Melbourne when I was teaching out there many years ago and have seen these adorable ‘little’ penguins, also known as korora or fairy penguins, at first hand.

And if you fancy getting involved and donating a jumper, you can find out more from the island’s Penguin Foundation website where you can also find their pattern.  We've included a link here too. 

And if you need some help with learning how to knit, this project is perfect. We've got tutorials on how to knit on our website. Click here to get started.

Additional reporting Evan Bartlett, the Metro

www.cobwebknits.co.uk