Native to Africa (as you can tell by their name), African penguins usually live in southern parts of the continent. Like most other penguins, they are flightless, despite being classified as birds. Unfortunately, African penguins are largely becoming extinct. There was an estimated 1.5 million of the penguins in 1910, but their numbers went down by ~90% around the turn of the century. African penguins are predicted to be totally extinct by 2026.
Now that I think about it, I might have been at the right place in exactly the right time. I had taken a trip to South Africa in June 2019, a perfect way to escape the hemisphere. If I went just a year late, it would have caused some tiny issues. Also, if I’d waited until 2022, the picture above would have looked a lot more empty.
By the time I was here, I had already been to a safari at Kruger National Park, and overlooked the southernmost point of Africa at Table Mountain. That night I picked out a new favorite restaurant. I came out here just for a quick day trip before going back to Cape Town and wrapping up this summer’s vacation.