Veterinarians who have been looking after the Adélie penguin at Dunedin Wildlife Hospital say she has some "serious attitude". Photo: Supplied / DOC / Jim Watts
A rare penguin that turned up on a Dunedin beach last month is preparing to go back home to Antarctica.
The Dunedin Wildlife Hospital and the Department of Conservation are currently working on a release plan for the Adélie penguin.
The Antarctic Treaty requires penguins to find their own way home.
Wildlife hospital staff believe the unnamed penguin is a female, based on her bill and foot measurements.
She has had a full health check and has been receiving treatment to protect her from contracting any New Zealand diseases, and prevent her from spreading Antarctic diseases to endangered Hoiho and other native penguins.
In a social media post, Dunedin Wildlife Hospital said its vet team had compared her to a Tasmanian devil.
"Personality wise, this feisty minx has some serious attitude, as do all Adélie penguins!"
She was "not overly fond" of humans but rather than running away, "she chooses to fight and will often charge our team while yelling what we can only imagine are expletives in penguin".
Adélie penguins are adapted to much colder environments than Dunedin's climate.
The nurses at the wildlife hospital have been freezing mini icebergs for her to play with while she is kept in a very cool, air-conditioned isolation ward.
While not yet endangered, Adélie penguin numbers have been hit hard by the decline in sea ice in Antarctica due to ocean warming.
