Alice B. reviewed The Great Penguin Rescue: 40,000 Penguins, a Devastating Oil Spill, and the Inspiring Story of the World's Largest Animal Rescue on + 3725 more book reviews
ON JUNE 23, 2000, the iron-ore carrier MV Treasure, en route from Brazil to China, foundered off the coast of Cape Town, South Africa, spilling 1,300 tons of oil into the ocean and contaminating the habitat of 75,000 penguins. Realizing thJuneat 41 percent of the world's population of African penguins could perish, local conservation officials immediately launched a massive rescue operation, and 12,500 volunteers from around the globe rushed to South Africa in hopes of saving the imperiled birds.
Serving as a rehabilitation manager during the initial phase of the three-month rescue effort, Dyan deNapoliâbetter known as "the Penguin Lady" for her extensive work with penguinsâand fellow volunteers de-oiled, nursed back to health, and released into the wild nearly all of the affected birds. Now, at the tenth anniversary of the disaster, deNapoli recounts this extraordinary true story of the world's largest and most successful wildlife rescue.
When she first entered the enormous warehouse housing most of the 19,000 oiled penguins, the birds' total silence told deNapoli all she needed to know about the extent of their trauma. African penguins are very vocal by nature, prone to extended fits of raucous, competitive braying during territorial displays and pair-bonding rituals, but these poor creatures now stood silently, shoulder to shoulder, in a state of shock. DeNapoli vividly details the harrowing rescue process and the heartbreaking scenarios she came up against alongside thousands of volunteers: unforgettable images of them laboriously scrubbing the oil from every penguin feather and force-feeding each individually; the excruciatingly painful penguin bites every volunteer received; and the wrenching decisions about birds too ill to survive. She draws readers headfirst into the exhausting physical and emotional experience and brings to life the cast of remarkable charactersâfrom Big Mike, a compassionate Jiu-Jitsu champion with a booming voice, who worked every day of the rescue effort; to a man named Welcome, aka "the Penguin Whisperer," who had the amazing ability to calm any penguin he held in his arms; to Louis, a seventeen-year-old medical student who created a new formula for the highly effective degreaser used by the rescue missionâwhose historic and heroic efforts saved the birds from near extinction. The extraordinary international collaboration of scientists, zookeepers, animal rescue groups, and thousands of concerned individuals helped save the African penguinsârecently declared an endangered speciesâfrom an all-too-common man-made disaster.
DeNapoli's heartwarming and riveting story is not just a portrait of these captivating birds, nor is it merely a cautionary tale about the environment. It is also an inspirational chronicle of how following one's passion can lead to unexpected, rewarding adventuresâand illustrates not only how people from around the world can unite for a greater purpose, but how they can be extraordinarily successful when doing so. The Great Penguin Rescue will inspire readers to believe they can make a difference
Serving as a rehabilitation manager during the initial phase of the three-month rescue effort, Dyan deNapoliâbetter known as "the Penguin Lady" for her extensive work with penguinsâand fellow volunteers de-oiled, nursed back to health, and released into the wild nearly all of the affected birds. Now, at the tenth anniversary of the disaster, deNapoli recounts this extraordinary true story of the world's largest and most successful wildlife rescue.
When she first entered the enormous warehouse housing most of the 19,000 oiled penguins, the birds' total silence told deNapoli all she needed to know about the extent of their trauma. African penguins are very vocal by nature, prone to extended fits of raucous, competitive braying during territorial displays and pair-bonding rituals, but these poor creatures now stood silently, shoulder to shoulder, in a state of shock. DeNapoli vividly details the harrowing rescue process and the heartbreaking scenarios she came up against alongside thousands of volunteers: unforgettable images of them laboriously scrubbing the oil from every penguin feather and force-feeding each individually; the excruciatingly painful penguin bites every volunteer received; and the wrenching decisions about birds too ill to survive. She draws readers headfirst into the exhausting physical and emotional experience and brings to life the cast of remarkable charactersâfrom Big Mike, a compassionate Jiu-Jitsu champion with a booming voice, who worked every day of the rescue effort; to a man named Welcome, aka "the Penguin Whisperer," who had the amazing ability to calm any penguin he held in his arms; to Louis, a seventeen-year-old medical student who created a new formula for the highly effective degreaser used by the rescue missionâwhose historic and heroic efforts saved the birds from near extinction. The extraordinary international collaboration of scientists, zookeepers, animal rescue groups, and thousands of concerned individuals helped save the African penguinsârecently declared an endangered speciesâfrom an all-too-common man-made disaster.
DeNapoli's heartwarming and riveting story is not just a portrait of these captivating birds, nor is it merely a cautionary tale about the environment. It is also an inspirational chronicle of how following one's passion can lead to unexpected, rewarding adventuresâand illustrates not only how people from around the world can unite for a greater purpose, but how they can be extraordinarily successful when doing so. The Great Penguin Rescue will inspire readers to believe they can make a difference
jjares reviewed The Great Penguin Rescue: 40,000 Penguins, a Devastating Oil Spill, and the Inspiring Story of the World's Largest Animal Rescue on + 3541 more book reviews
Disaster struck the coast of Cape Town, South Africa, on June 23, 2000, when the ship MV Treasure foundered. By pouring 1,300 tons of oil into the ocean and shore, the spill contaminated the habitat of 41% of the world's population of African penguins. This is how local and world conservationists called for volunteers to save the oiled and traumatized penguins. Incredibly, over 12,500 volunteers came to South Africa, hoping to save the penguins.
This is the first-person story of Dyan deNapoli and the rush to save the penguins. Sometimes Dyan veered off the path to tell her own story, but generally, she told the daily activities of the work done. She also gave credit to grocery stores (who created imaginative ways to donate money to the penguin work), restaurants (donating prepared foods for the workers), hotels (low-cost rooms), and airlines (half-price flights). It showed that the world could step up and help the penguins and workers in many ways.
The description of the first day, when the workers saw the extent of their task, is particularly poignant. Penguins usually are constantly âtalkingâ or moving around. The 19,000 oiled birds were silent and stunned (in one place). Twenty-thousand other penguins (that had not been oiled) had to be moved to new habitats, that were not oil-drenched. The author's descriptions of how hard it was to get the birds de-oiled were stunning. They worked 16-hour days for weeks without stopping for meals. She comments that everyone lost 10 â 20 lbs.
A surprise was learning that the birds needed more than to be de-oiled. They also needed to be fed (an arduous task), tested and medicated, watched for illnesses, checked that the penguin's feathers regained their waterproof status, reintroduced to swimming, and so much more. Then, the penguins were tagged and transported to the water, so the penguins could swim to their habitat.
With a few exceptions, this was an enthralling story of people coming together to save a species from extinction. The fact that they cleaned and rehabilitated 19,000 birds in less than three months is a tribute to the honest concern of thousands of people working together. I learned so much about these birds, their biology, habitat, and the studies done after the cleaning of the birds. It was amazing how well the penguins returned to life as usual and continued to breed new chicks.
There have been many studies done about how the birds were impacted. The best result was that, when another oil slick came to the same area, the penguins were less traumatized and responded as if they remembered the human's intervention before. The story of how many days the penguins took to swim back to their breeding grounds was moving.
This is an inspiring story of how people can gather together and do something remarkable, if only they try. â 4.5 stars.
This is the first-person story of Dyan deNapoli and the rush to save the penguins. Sometimes Dyan veered off the path to tell her own story, but generally, she told the daily activities of the work done. She also gave credit to grocery stores (who created imaginative ways to donate money to the penguin work), restaurants (donating prepared foods for the workers), hotels (low-cost rooms), and airlines (half-price flights). It showed that the world could step up and help the penguins and workers in many ways.
The description of the first day, when the workers saw the extent of their task, is particularly poignant. Penguins usually are constantly âtalkingâ or moving around. The 19,000 oiled birds were silent and stunned (in one place). Twenty-thousand other penguins (that had not been oiled) had to be moved to new habitats, that were not oil-drenched. The author's descriptions of how hard it was to get the birds de-oiled were stunning. They worked 16-hour days for weeks without stopping for meals. She comments that everyone lost 10 â 20 lbs.
A surprise was learning that the birds needed more than to be de-oiled. They also needed to be fed (an arduous task), tested and medicated, watched for illnesses, checked that the penguin's feathers regained their waterproof status, reintroduced to swimming, and so much more. Then, the penguins were tagged and transported to the water, so the penguins could swim to their habitat.
With a few exceptions, this was an enthralling story of people coming together to save a species from extinction. The fact that they cleaned and rehabilitated 19,000 birds in less than three months is a tribute to the honest concern of thousands of people working together. I learned so much about these birds, their biology, habitat, and the studies done after the cleaning of the birds. It was amazing how well the penguins returned to life as usual and continued to breed new chicks.
There have been many studies done about how the birds were impacted. The best result was that, when another oil slick came to the same area, the penguins were less traumatized and responded as if they remembered the human's intervention before. The story of how many days the penguins took to swim back to their breeding grounds was moving.
This is an inspiring story of how people can gather together and do something remarkable, if only they try. â 4.5 stars.
