Antarctic Penguins Rescued in Rio

A magellanic penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus) rescued off the coast of Rio de Janeiro state receives treatment from a veterinary student at the Niteroi Zoo, near Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, July 25, 2008. The magellanic penguins migrate annually to the Argentinian and Uruguayan coast during their migration from Patagonia in July, and large numbers end up on Rio de Janeiro's beaches every year, swept by strong ocean currents from the Strait of Magellan. This year is seeing higher numbers and more dead penguins than usual; more of 150 penguins have been treated by veterinarians at the Zoo this year and over 400 baby penguins have been found dead on the state's shores over the past two months. Penguins will transported by boat and freed in southern Brazil in September when the southern hemisphere Spring arrives. The species is classified as "Near Threatened," primarily due to the vulnerability of large breeding colonies to oil spills, which kill 20,000 adults and 22,000 juveniles every year off the coast of Argentina. The decline of fish populations is also responsible, as well as predators such as sea lions and giant petrels, which prey on both the chicks and the adults.(Austral Foto/Renzo Gostoli)

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A magellanic penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus) rescued off the coast of Rio de Janeiro state receives treatment from a veterinary student at the Niteroi Zoo, near Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, July 25, 2008. The magellanic penguins migrate annually to the Argentinian and Uruguayan coast during their migration from Patagonia in July, and large numbers end up on Rio de Janeiro's beaches every year, swept by strong ocean currents from the Strait of Magellan. This year is seeing higher numbers and more dead penguins than usual; more of 150 penguins have been treated by veterinarians at the Zoo this year and over 400 baby penguins have been found dead on the state's shores over the past two months. Penguins will transported by boat and freed in southern Brazil in September when the southern hemisphere Spring arrives. The species is classified as "Near Threatened," primarily due to the vulnerability of large breeding colonies to oil spills, which kill 20,000 adults and 22,000 juveniles every year off the coast of Argentina. The decline of fish populations is also responsible, as well as predators such as sea lions and giant petrels, which prey on both the chicks and the adults.(Austral Foto/Renzo Gostoli)

Gostoli Brazil Brasil Rio de Janeiro penguin veterinarian Patagonia Argentina uruguay magellanic Zoo Niteroi penguins treatment Spheniscus magellanicus