Penguin sweaters, also known as penguin jumpers, are

sweater A sweater (North American English) or pullover, also called a jumper (British English and Australian English), ...

s knitted for

penguin Penguins (order (biology), order List of Sphenisciformes by population, Sphenisciformes , family (biology), family Spheniscidae ) are a group of Water bird, aquatic flightless birds. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere: on ...

s that have been caught in

oil slick An oil spill is the release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment, especially the marine ecosystem, due to human activity, and is a form of pollution. The term is usually given to marine oil spills, where oil is released into th ...

s. When an

oil spill An oil spill is the release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment, especially the marine ecosystem, due to human activity, and is a form of pollution. The term is usually given to marine oil spills, where oil is released into th ...

affects penguins they have in the past been sometimes dressed in knitted sweaters, supposedly to stop them from poisoning themselves by ingesting the oil during

preening Preening is a found in birds that involves the use of the beak to position feathers, interlock feather that have become separated, clean plumage, and keep ectoparasites in check. Feathers contribute significantly to a bird's insulation, waterp ...

, and to keep them warm, since the spilled oil destroys their natural oils. The sweaters are removed and discarded as soon as the penguins can be washed.

History

The project originated with the

Phillip Island Nature Park Phillip Island Nature Park (PINP) is a conservation park located on Phillip Island, Victoria, Australia. Created in 1996, the park is owned by the Victorian State Government, however it is a self-funding commercial attraction for the purpose of an ...

oil spill of January 2000 and was successfully completed, but the knitting pattern and call for volunteers to donate remained available online. Instead of the 100 or so sweaters needed, thousands were sent. The extra sweaters were stockpiled by the Tasmanian Conservation Trust. As of 2014, the Australia-based Penguin Foundation is still accepting handmade sweaters but no longer uses these for penguin rehabilitation. Instead, these sweaters are used to dress toy penguins which are then sold to raise money for the foundation. After a 2011 oil spill in New Zealand, a local yarn shop put out the call for penguin jumpers, and supplied a pattern. Jumpers were received from all over the world. However, those cleaning and rehabilitating the penguins affected said they neither used nor requested the jumpers: heat lamps were used to keep cleaned penguins warm. Once they are cleaned, there is little danger of them ingesting oil when preening – one of the rationales given for penguin sweaters – and sweaters may in fact do more harm than good to the penguins. A penguin

wetsuit A wetsuit is a garment worn to provide thermal protection while wet. It is usually made of foamed neoprene, and is worn by surfing, surfers, Underwater diving, divers, windsurfers, canoeists, and others engaged in water sports and other activit ...

has been made for a penguin who lost his feathers, and similar garments are being made for battery chicken rehabilitation.

Controversy and potential risks

The use of penguin sweaters has been criticized as a potential risk to the health of the penguins, as wearing foreign garments can cause additional stress to the penguins and adversely affect their health. Instead, some wildlife rescues use heat lamps to help regulate the temperature of the birds and prevent excessive preening. The

International Bird Rescue International Bird Rescue is a nonprofit organization that rehabilitates injured aquatic birds, most notably seabirds affected by oil spills. Founded bAlice Berknerand members of the Ecology Action, including veterinarian James Michael Harris, D ...

does not use penguin sweaters or any bird sweaters, because of the dangers of placing a garment on the birds that presses the oil against their skin and prevents the fumes from the oil from dissipating. Another potential risk of using penguin sweaters is that handling or wearing foreign materials can cause additional stress to the penguins. Peter Dann, of the Philip Island Nature Park, stated that the

Little Penguins The little penguin (''Eudyptula minor'') is a species of penguin from New Zealand. They are commonly known as little blue penguins or blue penguins owing to their slate-blue plumage and are also known by their Māori name . The Australian ...

dealt with by Philip Island Nature Park have different needs than the

African Penguins The African penguin (''Spheniscus demersus''), also known as Cape penguin or South African penguin, is a species of penguin confined to southern African waters. Like all extant penguins, it is flightless, with a streamlined body and wings sti ...

International Bird Rescue, and that there were comparable rates of success for rehabilitating Little Penguins with sweaters and African Penguins with heat lamps.

References

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External links

Lyrics
to the James Gordon song, '' Sweaters for Penguins'' Oil spill remediation technologies Protective gear Sweaters Penguins