Help kororā fight their living crisis 

The kororā (little penguin) is Council’s number one pick for Forest & Bird's Bird of the Year competition, as while they are resilient, they are facing a living crisis of their own as many have been lost due to dog attacks over the last year.

Also, once you have seen one up close, you can’t help but fall in love with them, says Council’s Urban Ecology Manager Daniela Biaggio.

“Wellington City Council is working hard to protect the kororā and restore their habitats through a range of projects and initiatives, ecological restoration, signs, education, and supporting environmental groups.

“But the biggest threat to kororā at the moment are off-leash dogs, and a spate of recent fatalities could have been avoided. Responsible dog ownership and avoidance training helps ensure that both dogs and penguins can enjoy our coast without conflict.”

Wellington City Council is working with iwi and partner organisations to facilitate community-led avoidance training for dogs, designed to teach dogs to avoid interacting with kororā and their nests. After a successful pilot training session in August, more sessions are scheduled for later this month.  

The training is coordinated by Ross Gilmour and run by Willy Marsh in collaboration with Taranaki Whanui, Places for Penguins, Wellington City Council, Animal Control and the Department of Conservation.

Willy has extensive experience conducting Kiwi Dog Avoidance Training throughout New Zealand, including with Capital Kiwi in Pōneke. 

“Training dogs to avoid penguins, and other manu, helps ensure the safety of these special native taonga,” says Willy.

During the training, Willy walks with the owner and their dog around a training course. The course has a mixture of ‘mock’ penguins, deceased penguins, real penguin ‘poop’ and nesting material.

Willy uses an e-collar which gives him the option to use vibration, tone and static correction, any one of these can help to train a dog navigating a series of kororā signs. Dog owners involved with the pilot were happy with the way their dog was treated, and were all impressed with the outcome.

“It also supports responsible dog ownership by empowering owners to help improve outcomes for local wildlife, and fosters a community culture where pet owners are actively contributing to conservation efforts,” adds Willy.

Taranaki whānui kaitohutohu ngā kororā Charlie Rudd supports Willy and Ross’s mahi.

"I have witnessed their mahi and felt their mauri, educating people and protecting our taonga, aligns with our value to protect the taiao, they have the full support of mana whenua.”

Avoidance training directly reduces the risk of dogs attacking or harming kororā, ensuring safer coastal environments for the penguins and their nests.

There have been 11 confirmed deaths due to dog attacks in nine months, including most recently a tragic incident where the male of a tagged pair was mauled to death by a dog, close to its partner which was incubating two eggs in their nest.

Kororā eggs cannot be raised by a single parent as the female risks her own survival before leaving the eggs. Plans to protect this vulnerable mother and eggs are in progress.

For more information about the next training sessions for kororā avoidance training contact ross@penguinavoidance.org. Trained dogs need to still abide by all rules and regulations in any given area, so are prohibited from prohibited areas, and must be on-lead unless the area is designated off-leash.

If you spot a sick or injured kororā call the Department of Conservation (DOC) on 0800 362 468.

They may suggest that you take a sick bird to Wellington Zoo’s Te Kōhanga The Nest where they receive rescues and rehabilitate injured kororā, in addition to all the other conservation work they do for native birds and other species – and they're backing kororā for Bird of the Year as well. Learn more about this process on the Forest and Bird website.

If you find a dead kororā, call DOC at 0800 362 468. Take pictures of the bird and the surrounding space to help DOC understand what happened.

You can also send photos to the Places for Penguins project by Forest and Bird via their Facebook page, or email placesforpenguins@gmail.com.

It takes a city to really help them fight their plight. Visit wellington.govt.nz/korora for more information.