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Radio Penguins

Radio transmitters attached to yellow-eyed penguins are helping unravel their behaviour and ecology. Bruce McKinley, of DOC Dunedin, has found that the penguins travel at about 2-7 kilometres per hour and forage 25-40 kilometres offshore.

Opalfish and red cod make up more than half of the penguins' diet, but the ecology of these fish is poorly understood. This underscores the need for better understanding of both prey and predator when trying to conserve an endangered species, McKinley says.