63 endangered African Penguins killed by a swarm of honey bees in Cape Town

At least 63 penguins died at a beach near South Africa’s Cape Town City after a possible venomous swarm of honey bees stung the endangered species. According to preliminary investigations done by government officials and a nonprofit organisation, the ill-fated penguins were attacked sometime between Thursday afternoon and Friday morning. According to reports of The Independent, a statement was released by government-run South African National Parks (SANParks) in which they asserted that the carcasses of the penguins were found inside the Boulders African penguin colony.

Further, the British online newspaper report said that the officials from SANParks and penguin experts from the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB) rushed to the spot and started investigating the possible reasons for the mass deaths of the endangered African penguins. The media report also claimed that the preliminary report of disease and toxicology testing claimed there were no external physical injuries were found on any of the birds and added multiple bee stings were found in all the carcasses of penguins. 

The investigators also found dozens of dead bees at the spot where the endangered birds were found dead. Apart from the penguins found at the Boulders African penguin colony, a dead penguin was also found on Fish Hoek beach with multiple bee stings. According to the statement released by SANParks, all 63 penguins died because of being stung by a swarm of Cape honey bees. However, samples are still being tested for other toxicity possibilities and diseases to rule out any other potential cause, said the statement released by SANParks.

Penguins in Africa declined in the last three decades: Report

Alison Kock, a SANParks marine biologist, said in a statement on Saturday said, "We are grateful to all our conservation partners, especially SANCCOB and the City of Cape Town, for assisting us in investigating this unusual event. No more dead African penguins were found on site today, and we will continue to monitor the situation." It is worth mentioning that the Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds in Southern Africa report revealed that the number of penguins living in South Africa has dropped by 73% to 10,400 pairs in the past three decades and, the recent incident has further created a reason for great concern among the environmentalists.

(Image: Pixabay)