Sometimes you feel the need to move on. Somewhere there’s an ocean, innocent and wild. Somewhere, someone’s calling you, and when the chips are down, you’re just a traveling penguin. As in Gus, the Emperor penguin who just traversed more than 2,000 miles of open ocean from his home in Antarctica to the town of Denmark in Western Australia. Pioneer that he is, Gus became the first Emperor penguin to set foot in Oz when he swam up on November 1, where he was immediately spotted by surfers. So far the long distance swimmer has kept mum on the reason for his journey and how long it took him, but that could be down to the fact that the poor guy is malnourished from such an arduous trek! Gus weighed in at 51 lbs, while adult Emperor penguins are typically closer to 100 lbs. Don’t worry, experts are taking care of the little history-maker (including misting sprays of cold water to mimic his home climate) to get him in good health before they discuss next steps with Gus. From People Mag:
An emperor penguin is in recovery after swimming from Antarctica to Australia — a journey of over 2,000 miles.
The bird was discovered on a tourist beach on the country’s southwest coast on Nov. 1, according to a government statement obtained by the Associated Press.
The lone penguin was first spotted by surfer Aaron Fowler, per the Australian newspaper Albany Advertiser.
“We had a look [at] what was going on and there was this big bird in the water, and we thought it was another sea bird,” Fowler told the outlet, adding, “but then it kept coming closer to the shore — and it was way too big — and it just stood up and waddled right over to us.”
The penguin reportedly weighed only 51 lbs — with 55-100 lbs considered normal for the species.
The bird — which has been nicknamed Gus — is currently under the care of local wildlife experts and is being regularly sprayed with chilled water mist to help him cope with his new, significantly warmer climate.
According to Western Australia state’s Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, the goal is to rehabilitate the penguin. Officials are currently unsure whether he will return to Antarctica following his recovery, though “options are still being worked through,” per the AP report.
PEOPLE reached out to Western Australia’s Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions for further details but did not immediately hear back.
According to the Center for Biological Diversity, a nonprofit that works to secure the future of endangered species, emperor penguins are especially impacted by the effects of global warming due to the melting of ice shelves.
“Scientists project that 80% of the world’s emperor penguins may disappear by the end of the century without drastic cuts in carbon pollution,” the org states. “These penguins are also threatened by ocean acidification and industrial fisheries, which further reduce prey availability.”
Yeah, I think we all knew the likely cause of Gus’s pilgrimage would be global warming, just like with our unnamed flamingo friend who toured Cape Cod over the summer. People don’t tend to uproot their lives when everything is hunky dory at home.
Still, I gotta say, penguins really are outdoing themselves this year! We have Pesto the Great, the giant baby King penguin chilling in Melbourne as he receives visiting dignitaries ahead of his fledging — which will dwarf him once Gus gets back in shape. Hey, for all we know Gus popped over to meet Pesto! I’m just glad Gus met surfer Aaron Fowler upon crossing the Australian border, because everything Aaron has said to the media is pure gold. Starting with how Gus emerged from the water: “It was kind of funny, like as he came out of the water he went to do a tummy slide, like I guess he’s used to on the ice, and he just did a kind of faceplant in the sand and shook all the sand off and looked a bit shocked,” to how Gus approached him: “He was not afraid of us at all, I think he might have thought we were penguins because of our wet suits.” Bless you, Aaron. I’m sure that’s exactly what Gus was thinking.
photos credit: Wolfgang Jäkel / ImageBROKER / Avalon