Every workplace has its own cast of characters. The office jokester, the person who has the inside scoop, the workaholic, the guy who always offers to help, the person who manages to jam the copy machine every time. And at SANCCOB? The office character is 12-inches tall, demands three fish a day and honks if her demands aren’t met. Yup, it’s Rockie, the Northern rockhopper penguin!

The star takes a dip in the pool

Though SANCCOB rehabilitates mostly African penguins, they do on occasion get rockhopper penguins that have been found on local beaches. Rockhoppers are not normally found in South Africa. However, the Northern rockhopper does occur on a group of islands to the south. It is from these islands that folks theorize that the rockhoppers may come from. If they catch an ocean current and take a left instead of a right, they can end up in Cape Town.

It’s hard to say what Rockie’s origins are (and she doesn’t like to talk about the past) but the SANCCOB crew does know a little bit about her. She was admitted to SANCCOB in early 2009 after she was found on a beach near Cape Agulhas. She was able to be rehabilitated and is now approximately 4 years old (though she doesn’t like to talk about her age either). Her feathers are a bit ragged right now-she is getting ready to molt her feathers sometime in January!

A bad feather day?

Because she was rehabilitated at the center and there isn’t a way to release her back home, Rockie found a permanent home at SANCCOB. She is part of the resident population but she earns her keep! Rockie has been acclimated to people so that she can participate in educational programs! If school groups come to SANCCOB, Rockie is the star of the show. She is able to show the class how a penguin eats, how they walk and what they even sound like!

The star of the show!

Rockie is also a favorite penguin at SANCCOB. Many times she will be left to roam the hallways, a good way for her to get some exercise as she hops from area to area. You never know—you may be walking to tea break and find her directing traffic! But watch out as you are going through the swinging doors, you may run into a rockhopper!

Directing traffic

Penguins have the right of way!

As cute as she is, Rockie is a reminder of great rehabilitation and educational work that SANCCOB is involved in. She also is a reminder that, as with the African penguin, Northern rockhoppers are listed as endangered and are facing major issues, such as oil spills and over fishing, in the wild. Groups like SANCCOB are doing their part but we all need to do our part to make sure these animals are around for a long time. Want to know how to help out? Check out the Aquarium’s Live Blue page to see how simple things we do in our own lives can make a big impact on the lives of others. Rockie will thank you!

Have you done your part to live blue?

Learn more about the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds, or SANCCOB and their Penguin Chick Bolstering Project.

Follow the adventures of Jo's co-worker, Paul! Aquarium penguin biologist Paul Leonard is also in South Africa to study and care for African penguins in the Southern Hemisphere! Read about his experience on the Penguin Blog. 

As an educator, I’m always looking for new ways to talk about our penguin exhibit to Aquarium visitors. It’s one of the reasons I came to South Africa—to see how other institutions teach about penguins. Fortunately for me there is an aquarium right in Cape Town so off I went to visit!

Welcome to the Two Oceans Aquarium!

The Two Oceans Aquarium is named after the unique position of South Africa. (Not the first Aquarium employee to go to this aquarium and blog about it!)  Both the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet here so South Africa has a pretty diverse ocean habitat right outside it’s back door. The Two Oceans Aquarium does a great job at featuring different animals from these two oceans: colorful tropical fish, cold water kelp and even sand tiger sharks can be found. But I came for the penguins.

I was fortunate enough to have met the Director of Education Russell Stevens while he was here in Boston last summer. He and his staff were able to show me around and talk about what sorts of programming they do with their penguin exhibit! Two Oceans have rockhopper penguins as well as African penguins on exhibit, similar to the New England Aquarium, so it was nice to see some familiar beaks. The staff was so warm and accommodating and before I knew it, I was helping with feeding time.

Friendly "Young Biologist" volunteers helped answer my questions

In order to feed the penguins back in Boston, the staff and volunteers need to don wetsuits to stay warm inside the cold water. Here in Cape Town, the penguins are featured on a beach habitat so no wetsuits required! I was able to shadow Anna during her food preparations and feeding within the exhibit. Just like home, each penguin has a name and as each bird gets feed a sardine, it’s marked down on a sheet for easy record keeping. As Anna had her hands full making sure that all of the birds got fed, it was my job to make sure that the fish were accounted for.

Food prep

Data collection

We made our way from the African birds to the rockhoppers who were more than happy to visit the fish bucket. Nikki the rockhopper even paid Anna a visit once she was done feeding, or maybe Nikki just wanted his spot back on the rock!

Putting me to work

Anna (the person) and Nikki (the rockhopper)

It was a great day at the aquarium. I met some amazing people, shared ideas on how to get the message out there that penguins need our help and even worked in the exhibit. Aquariums are important places to share details about these animals but also to show people how they can make changes in their own behavior that can make positive changes for the oceans. The African penguin is endangered and needs all the help they can get. And the Two Oceans Aquarium is doing their part to make sure that the information gets passed along. So thank you to everyone that made my day a great one. All the best to Two Oceans folks—and if you are ever in Boston, make sure to drop by!

All lined up for lunch

Empty bucket means well-fed rockhoppers!