Yellow Eyed Penguin

You can see from this picture where it got its name.  They are so much fun to watch.  These penguins come out of the sea and nest on the land.  They usually make their nests among the vegetation on the hills.  The yellow eyed penguins are about 70 cm tall and only occur in NZ. 

This isn't a penguin that we saw together, rather this was taken several years later on a third trip to the country.  A penguin came out of the water not far away during the middle of the day.  It's unusual for them to come out of the water during the day.  The pengie was hopping along rocks on the way to it's nest.  This penguin was hangin' at Curio Bay, which Val and I eventually visited.