Leading British sleeping bag and insulated clothing manufacturer, Snugpak, has chosen to support the Burgher’s Walk Penguin Ranger Project, South Africa, as part of the European Outdoor Conservation Association’s (EOCA) funding scheme.
People can vote by clicking here before the deadline, October 18.
The iconic African penguin is the only penguin species to naturally occur on the African continent. It was once one of South Africa’s most abundant seabirds, but has suffered a massive population decline. During the early 20th century the population was estimated at one million breeding pairs, however, today the total estimate (including Namibia) is less than 23 000 breeding pairs – a drop of more than 97% over the last century.
The five primary African penguin breeding colonies in the Western Cape are Dassen Island, Robben Island, Boulders Beach (including Burgher’s Walk), Stony Point and Dyer Island. While other colonies numbers have declined dramatically in the last few years, the penguin population at Boulders Beach has remained relatively stable.
Protecting and managing this key colony is absolutely vital to the survival of this endangered species. The Burgher’s Walk Penguin Project benefits endangered African penguins by taking direct, rehabilitation-focused, conservation action to bolster the wild population. It is a coordinated plan between the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB), the City of Cape Town and the South African National Parks (SANParks) to protect the African penguin colony at Boulders Beach and rehabilitate the indigenous vegetation in the area. Funding goes towards the rescue and rehabilitation of hundreds of endangered penguins at SANCCOB’s seabird centre, the employment and training of four dedicated Penguin Rangers and management of an iconic penguin colony in Cape Town, South Africa.
Designed to harness the power of the outdoor industry and to raise money to donate to grass roots conservation groups, EOCA is a not-for-profit initiative from the European outdoor industry and is funded by membership and other fundraising activities within the outdoor industry. 100% of membership fees go to the support of projects and membership is open to anyone that can demonstrate an involvement in the European outdoor industry.
It is quick and easy (no sign up required) to vote for Snugpak’s project in the water category, just visit the following link before the deadline, October 18, 2017: http://www.outdoorconservation.eu/project-info.cfm?pageid=19
