How A Major Storm Helped A Lost Penguin Find Her Way Home

You only need to look at the box office earnings of 2006’s “Happy Feet” to realize that we all seem to love a penguin story with a happy ending. And this week, one such tale played out in real life.

Meet Pan-chan

A curious, 6-year-old penguin at Gekidan Penters Zoo on Himakajima island in Japan recently figured out how to swim through her enclosure and embarked on a journey that had her keepers fearing the worst. After Pan-chen — or Pen, as she’s often called — had been missing for about two weeks, she managed to find her way back home.

The zoo was the only environment Pan-chen had ever known, and since she wasn’t raised in the wild the chances were not good that she would have been able to survive for two weeks. But zookeepers say a major typhoon intervened at just the right time.

Millions of people were evacuated from the area before the storm, called Shanshan, made landfall, bringing with it devastating winds and flooding.

It might seem that a typhoon would’ve only decreased Pan-chen’s chances of survival, but experts say there are several reasons that it might have been the only reason she’s safe today.

Blessing in disguise

Since Pan-chen was loose in the ocean, there were several potentially deadly dangers lurking in the water for a penguin like her. But three of the most likely threats were reduced or eliminated due to the impact of Shanshan.

• She might have died in a collision with a boat, but vessels weren’t on the water due to the weather emergency.
• Similarly, she didn’t have to worry about being caught up in the nets of fishing boats.
• And the typhoon brought cooler temperatures and fresh water to prevent Pan-chen from perishing from the heat.

Chris Agee September 13th, 2024

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