Not even penguins are immune to putting off Christmas shopping to the last minute.
A little blue penguin wandered into Mather's Jewellers in Oamaru on Wednesday.
Co-owner Suzanne Mather said she had never seen anything like that happen before.
"It was most bizarre.
"I thought initially it was a duck or a pigeon but soon found out it was a little blue that lost its way."
A little blue penguin wandered into Mather’s Jewellers in Oamaru on Wednesday. PHOTO: SUPPLIED
Colony science and environmental manager Dr Philippa Agnew said the visit was a common occurrence, especially at this time of the year.
"Lately we've been called out a couple of times a week.
"Mostly they're chicks that are ready to fledge and have left their nest and wandered the wrong way."
It was important people understood the penguins that made their way into town were not part of the colony.
"We have these two managed colonies [of penguins] but those ones we're picking up in town, they naturally live in town.
"They're not lost or from the colony, they're just other birds that breed elsewhere."
Dr Agnew encouraged anyone who sees a penguin around town to call the colony immediately.
