AWARD YEAR
2015
CATEGORY
Play & Learning
GOALS
Reduced Inequality
KEYWORDS
pollution, oceans, biodiversity
COUNTRY
Australia
DESIGNED BY
Penguin Foundation
WEBSITE
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/11/australias-oldest-man-sweaters-penguins-oil_n_6660962.html
KNITS FOR NATURE
Tiny sweaters for oil-covered penguins minimize the negative effects of the spill and saves them!
Tiny sweaters knit by a group of volunteers are not for people, but penguins. In the event of an oil spill near Philip Island’s 32,000 little penguins, wildlife clinic workers put oil-covered birds in sweaters to minimize the amount of oil they ingest while preening themselves. According to the Philip Island Penguin Foundation, the substance also matts the penguin’s feathers, which both prevents it from regulating its temperature and reduces the animal’s buoyancy in water. Following a spill near Philip Island in 2001, 483 little penguins ended up at the rehabilitation center, with 96% ultimately being released back into the wild thanks to these sweaters.