Penguin Island is a place that I highly recommend you visit for a nature excursion over spring or summer. The nature sanctuary is located 45 minutes south of Perth in the heart of the stunning Shoalwater Islands Marine Park. Incredibly close and accessible. It's our favourite place this summer so far. I came here a few times as a child and I was quietly hoping my fond memories would match what we were about to experience. As we waited for the ferry I calculated that it had actually been over 20 years since my last visit! (Really?!) As soon as we disembarked, I was met with that warm and fuzzy nostalgia and felt relief when I saw that the island hadn't changed that much at all. Except for... the amount of bird life! Now there are birds in abundance, colonies of them. We were firstly greeted by a mass of Bridled Terns. What a sweet bird! They have a big black stripe across their eye and didn't appear to be all that shy, we got quite close for a good look. We observed them for a short while and noticed they had nests in the shrubs. As our eyes focused on the shrubs, we saw the birds were in fact all over the shrubs, some busily darting in and out of their hidey holes, whilst others chose to sit atop their leafy castles and squawk. It was quite fascinating to watch! Further research at home told us that it is indeed breeding season (Nov - Jan). Next, we headed to the back of the island for a swim and a snorkel. The translucent water was so calm and inviting. We spotted a Southern Eagle Ray, Whiting, Herring and many schools of Zebrafish. We heard a girl excitedly shout as she exited the water that she'd seen a Toad Fish! The joy across her face was priceless. Our boy was delighted to see so many fish so close to shore, whilst our little girl loved splashing about in the calm water and building sand castles under the shade of a natural limestone bridge. Awesome rugged limestone formations wrap around the whole island, they make for interesting exploring. My son curiously climbed to the top to search for pools of water and little creatures. He spotted a few Purple Swift-footed Shore Crabs hiding under a cave-like opening, and there were loads of Chiton attached to the rock, some of them fossils. This mollusc clings tightly to rocks with its broad muscular foot. It's quite an interesting creature to inspect and touch with its hard and bumpy shell plates. Together, we counted the interlocking plates - eight! If you love bird watching, this is the place for you. I don't think I've ever seen so many birds! Joining the Bridled Terns were flocks of Crested Terns (who have the funkiest mop of black feathers on their heads!), Silver Gulls and lots of pelicans - we saw two separate pelican colonies. It was a really hot day, so after a few hours we decided to find a patch of grass in the BYO picnic area and have lunch. It was so relaxing with views out to the ocean. We saw lots of King Skinks hiding in the shade of the boardwalk, and in the garden. We also saw a Buff-Banded Rail - and what a beautiful little bird with its patterned plumage. We had to laugh as it didn't take long for the skink and the bird to move in on our picnic rug once we stood up to pack away! Did we see any wild Little Penguins? No, not this time as they are quite well hidden in their burrows and the sun was too hot and harsh for us to hunt around for them. The best time of year for spotting wild penguins is now though, during their summer moulting period. The penguins stay ashore for six to eight weeks while growing their new feathers. You can of course see them up close at The Penguin Discovery Centre where they have feeding sessions throughout the day. There's some natural curiosities in front of the Discovery Centre that my little ones found fascinating. I was most excited to see a trash display, a perfect opportunity to discuss how these highly consumed items can do so much damage to the marine park. We cover this topic quite often, typically whenever we visit the beach, but today my son was especially shocked to see the aluminium can and then hear that it can take more than 1 million years for it decompose. "1 million years?!" he exclaimed wildly! Penguin Island is a special place to the Indigenous people of Western Australia. There's a 45-minute Indigenous Walk tour that I'd love to do next time I visit. We will definitely be back to see how the island has changed through the seasons. We might hop on the wildlife cruise next time and see rare Australian sea lions on the beach at Seal Island, and perhaps we'll spot some bottlenose dolphins too. Nature journalingFollowing our visit to Penguin Island, my son and I sat down to journal some of our nature observations. I treasure this time together, where we can reflect on what we saw and what we remember. My boy painted the crab and fish that he saw. Learning resourcesSome great resources that we use for research and identification are:
Have you visited Penguin Island, or is there an island nearby that it reminds you of? I'd love to hear about your nature experiences.
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AuthorI am a free-spirited homeschooling mama who finds great inspiration, beauty and meaning in nature. Archives
March 2019
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