Research

Current research projects include:

• Oiled wildlife cleaning technology
• Little penguin foraging behaviour and diet studies

Past research projects:

• Satellite tracking
• Microchip technology
• Little penguin diving behaviour                                                                                                                                        

The technology, dubbed the ‘Oil Spill Wand’, works when iron powder is applied to an oiled animal and binds with the oil. A magnetic wand is then waved over the animal, drawing up the metallic powder and oil. Traditional oil spill cleaning methods rely on hot water and detergent, and wildlife are easily stressed while scrubbed clean or transported and housed in special facilities.

The technology is part of a joint research and development program being conducted by researchers at the Penguin Foundation and Professor John Orbell at Victoria University. The project has also been funded by Google Australia, receiving $250,000 as a finalist in the 2014 Google Impact Challenge and Phillip Island Nature Parks.

“The value in this technology is how it allows a quick clean in the field so the more toxic or corrosive components can be removed from the wildlife as quickly as possible,” Professor Orbell said. “This greatly enhances the animal’s survival chances after their release.”

Oil spills have a devastating effect on the environment but with the funding the team aim to further develop the Oil Spill Wand and dramatically reduce the impact oil spills have on wildlife, including penguins, otters and even turtles. The project team hopes to make the Oil Spill Wand available to Wildlife Rescue Centres across the world within three years.

Little penguin diving
(Phillip Island Nature Parks)

Researchers have identified which prey species are important to the little penguin and its ecosystem but they cannot predict cause and effect if a particular prey is removed due to mortality, fishing and environment changes without a mechanistic ecosystem model. Penguins are top predators and are sensitive to these ecosystem variations.

This research aims to provide fine-scale data to monitor marine prey abundance in relation to environmental changes, and is an important step to monitor the future of little penguins in the rapidly changing marine system of south-eastern Australia.

The Foundation is supporting this project, along with the Australian Research Council, Phillip Island Nature Parks, Monash University, Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curiet (France), Australian Antarctic Division and the Institut of Marine Science (Spain) by providing four hand held responder readers and programming an ecosystem model to measure prey abundance and availability in the marine habitats, allowing for integrated management of penguins and their food resources.

Tracking the movements of little penguins at sea provides a snapshot of marine ecosystems, as well as where penguins go to feed. In 2008, the Foundation helped fund a research project that used satellite tracking to determine the winter feeding grounds of little penguins.

Over the three months of the study, the majority of little penguins travelled to Port Phillip Bay, south-west of Phillip Island, and west along the Victorian coast as far as Portland. The penguins spent on average seven to eight days at sea in search of fish.

The research highlights that Port Phillip Bay and western Victoria as important feeding grounds for little penguins during winter, which in turn informs wildlife management practices. The research also indicates the need for penguins to travel further in winter to find food.

 Microchips are used to identify penguins and are similar to what your dog or cat may have. Penguin researchers scan the microchip for a unique number and record data, such as the burrow number of that penguin. Over time, researchers build a history of individual penguins and can track any trends across the penguin colony.

The Foundation funded four new microchip readers that are capable of withstanding the harsh outdoor conditions of the coastal environment.