A little blue penguin scored itself an own goal last week when the koror\u0101 found itself entangled in a 10-year-old’s football net in a New Plymouth garden.<\/p>\n
Ezra Tomlinson, 10, spotted the bird caught in his goal net in the family’s back garden last week. <\/p>\n
His grandmother Jackie said the discovery prompted an immediate response.<\/p>\n
“My husband jumped out of bed and we headed down the lawn to check it out,” she said.<\/p>\n
The family cut the penguin free, wrapped it in a towel and placed it in a box before calling the DOC hotline for advice. <\/p>\n
Ezra started school late the following morning after the family took the bird to New Plymouth Vets for further treatment.<\/p>\n
“It was a pretty cool experience for him to be able to see the penguin, then take that story to school,” Jackie said.<\/p>\n
The family, who live near East End Reserve, were struck by how far the bird had travelled to end up in their garden.<\/p>\n
“It had walked up the beach, across boulders, the carpark, up a bank, over the railway line, and under our gate before it finally blundered into Ezra’s football net in the dark,” Jackie said.<\/p>\n
DOC programme lead marine and compliance Cam Hunt retrieved the unharmed penguin from the vets and released it at a nearby beach. <\/p>\n
He said the family had handled the situation perfectly.<\/p>\n
“Some terrific naturing by Jackie and the team to swing into action and help out this penguin \u2014 it was a great effort.”<\/p>\n
At this time of year, koror\u0101 come ashore to nest and mate, and have been known to walk up to 1.5km inland in search of a nesting spot. <\/p>\n