Numbers of the African penguin, which is endemic to South Africa and Namibia, are rapidly declining. Perhaps most of us aren't aware of this, but African penguins are up against climate change, overfishing, oil pollution and penguin egg and guano collection.

Learn about endangered turtles, ornithology careers, Africans penguins and many other fascinating members of our earth at the FREE Biodiversity Expo from 5 to 8 May at Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden.

Of the 9 856 bird species on Earth, 1 226 are listed as Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable. Forty of these occur in South Africa and of these 20 are endemic. Although extinction is a natural phenomenon, species are now disappearing from our planet at an alarming rate, and studies have shown that this is mostly driven by human activities.