African penguin numbers in South Africa are dwindling rapidly. Minister Barbara Creecy needs to step in fast and take dramatic action if we want to avoid showing future generations these animals in documentaries as they no longer exist, writes Melanie Verwoerd.
We were stunned into complete silence. After 90 minutes on a bumpy boat, we had reached St Croix Island off the coast of Gqeberha.
Until recently, the island was home to the biggest colony of African penguins in the world, and we were looking forward to seeing these cute and comical little birds. Yet, as we approached St Croix there were no penguins to be seen – not a single one.