Oamaru Blue Penguin Colony, Oamaru
Home of the Blue Penguin
See the world's smallest penguins in their natural environment
Our Blue Penguins nest close to town under the cliffs along the Historic Harbour foreshore. The Oamaru Blue Penguin Colony is just beyond the Victorian Heritage Precinct and you are within walking distance of the town centre, close to shops, restaurants and accommodation.
Come See the Penguins!
Choose what you see at the Oamaru Blue Penguin Colony. Either: sit in the stand at dusk and watch the penguins come ashore after their day's fishing; or take a Behind the Scenes tour during the day to view the nesting penguins and possibly their chicks, depending on the time of year.
Day Tours
During the day visitors have the opportunity to enter the breeding colony. Take a casual stroll around part of the colony, seeing the natural habitat of the penguins.’Information boards are placed around giving an insight into the life cycle of the penguins,and the monitoring programs we have here. If there are penguins resident in our daytime viewing facility, the 'Blue Wing', visitors will see penguins in their nest boxes. However penguins come and go naturally so we cannot guarantee birds will be seen during the day. Our Penguin Walks are self-guided, however we do have a guide on hand to answer your questions. Penguin walks run during the day starting at 10am, ending approximately 60 minutes before dusk. Photography and filming without flash is allowed inside the colony but not in the Blue Wing.
Dusk Tours
Visitors are seated in an outdoor viewing area where they listen to an informative commentary about our blue penguins.
The birds return home from their days fishing, make their way onto the beach, up a stony ramp, and cross into the Colony. This happens at different times during the year as daylight/nightlight change. During the summer months Evening Viewing is as late as 9:00 pm while during the winter our birds are arriving home as early as 5:30 pm. Arrival numbers vary from Summer to Winter from up to 180 birds in the summer to under 30 in Winter. From when the first bird arrives, it takes approx an hour for all the birds to return.