Phillip Island is the home of the world's smallest penguins; they are just one foot tall. The male Fairy Penguin leaves his roost to hunt for fish at sea for up to a week. A portion of the seagoing penguins return after sunset each day. We saw hundreds of penguins waddling across the beach towards their roosts. We also saw mother penguins and their young facing the opposite direction waiting for their mates to reappear. As more and more penguins returned, a happy chorus of reunion chirps emanated from the hills above the beach. Heartwarming!
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| Hundreds of people wait for the return of the penguins. |
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| Some of the penguins returning to their roosts. Flashes were not allowed and the light levels were very low. The black outlines at the bottom of the picture are the shadows of people. This gives you some idea how small the penguins are. |