Almost 40 African penguins have died at Safaripark Beekse Bergen in the Netherlands over the past five months. The animals had an intestinal infection.
Zoo staff discovered that a bacterium caused the infection, most likely brought in by wild birds. The park has introduced measures to stop the disease from spreading further.
Eighteen African penguins remain in the colony. Veterinarians and zoo keepers are closely monitoring the surviving penguins and say they are doing well.
Since December, visitors have not been able to see the penguins. The animals are currently staying indoors because of the winter season. “As soon as the situation is completely good again and the weather allows it, they may go outside again,” a spokesperson told Omroep Brabant.
The park also lost fourteen penguins last year after transferring them from another zoo in the Netherlands. Those birds became ill, but the zoo could not determine the exact cause of their deaths.
Zoo officials say they hope to avoid further losses in the future.
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