Penguin colony watched on infrared camera

Oamaru's Blue Penguin Colony visitor centre, which opened on Friday, now has an infrared camera installed in one of the penguin nesting boxes, so visitors can watch and hear the birds on a television screen.

Colony manager Denis Dove believed it was the first such set-up in New Zealand to show penguin behaviour.

Mr Dove said more than 2000 people had been through the centre since it opened, and on Saturday and Sunday it was "like Piccadilly".

The colony had increasing prominence as a tourist attraction, he said.

December visitor statistics showed the number of tourist coaches arriving to watch the colony was up 97 per cent on December 2000.

- WAIKATO THIS WEEK