Penguins swim 2,500km to Australia and are released back into the wild

A penguin, like Fiordland, New Zealand, swims 2,500km and lands on a beach in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It has now been released back into the wild.

When it was discovered on July 10, the emaciated penguin was struggling among the rocks at the Kennett River, 170 km west of Melbourne (Australia), according to the Guardian.

It was taken by a marine lifeguard to Melbourne Zoo and taken care of to replenish nutrients. When he got a little better, the penguin began to eat amusedly, said Melbourne zoo's veterinary curator, Dr. Michael Lynch.

"It eats about 20-25% of its body weight every day. It's like an 80kg person eating 20kg of food a day. It's amazing how digestible it is," Dr. Lynch said.

The penguin has traveled 2,500 km from New Zealand to Australia.(Photo: AFP).

When fully recovered, the penguin was sent to Phillip Island Nature Park to practice swimming again in the large pool, preparing for the journey to New Zealand.

" We expect it to return to New Zealand and breed. We have put a microchip into the bird, so if it comes back to New Zealand in the future and someone discovers the microchip, we will be very happy, " shared Dr. Lynch.

The total number of penguins in the world today is about 4,000-5,600. Mr. Lynch said penguins were rare in Australia before but in recent years there have been more appearances for unknown reasons.

"Penguins can swim thousands of kilometers away in search of food. So it's not uncommon for us to find them in Australia. But it certainly swims very far from home," Lynch said.

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