Professional snipers have been brought in to guard a vulnerable colony of penguins in Australia.

Potograph source

The deployment follows the mysterious deaths of nine of the flightless birds over the last two weeks.

The mutilated bodies of the animals, known as fairy penguins, were found in a national park near Sydney harbour.

The main suspects are dogs and foxes. At 40cm tall, the world’s smallest penguin species is clearly no match for such aggressive enemies.

I am shocked. SHOCKED! That the Fairy Penguin (aka the “little penguin, Eudyptula minor) is the smallest species of penguin. I thought that honor went to the adelie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae).

Story source, which has a video