National Aquarium's penguin of the year competition: Battle of naughty v nice leaves voters in a flap

Who is Penguin of the Year 2019 going to be? One of this happy trio, pictured? You decide. Photo / Supplied

Fun, flirty, feisty flippers are fluffing their feathers and flaunting their stuff at the National Aquarium in a bid to be crowned Penguin of the Year.

Some would say it's the most important vote of the year - sorry to you local body politics aspirants.

Members of the public have the chance to vote for their flippered favourite until October 9 on the National Aquarium's website where they can also learn more about the Little Penguins, and what makes each of them unique.

Thousands of votes have rolled in since the competition launched last week.

The whole Little Penguin crew at the National Aquarium of New Zealand are held in high esteem by visitors, but ever since their keepers started awarding "Penguin of the Month", in June 2017, their popularity has grown in leaps and bounds.

Last year, votes came from as far afield as Estonia, Vietnam, Belarus and Guatemala – and, with regular social media posts about the little birds' latest goings on still attracting hundreds of comments each time, aquarium director Adrian Fowler expected the 2019 competition to be just as fierce.

"Everyone seems to have a favourite, whether it's one of our more mischievous friends or one who makes 'nice' Penguin of the Month board regularly.

"The main thing is, this fun competition is another way of raising awareness of the smallest species of penguin in the world, and why we should protect our wildlife," Fowler said.

All of the Little Penguins are at the National Aquarium because they need help from the specialist staff.

They arrived as abandoned chicks, have been injured in dog attacks, are partially sighted, or have become sick in the wild.

Some are missing flippers due to getting caught in fishing nylon.

The facility is a rehabilitation centre for most of the birds, sending them back out into the wild when they are recovered and ready.

Some penguins are unfortunately not strong enough to return to their natural habitats, so they find a permanent home there.

There will be three finalists this year, and the final round of voting for Penguin of the Year, again through the website, will run from October 11 until October 16.

The winner will be revealed on October 18.

THE CANDIDATES:

Here's a pick of some of Hawke's Bay Today's favourites.

Timmy - Timmy is the reigning Penguin of the Year, battling it out with Mo last year to take the crown. He has a habit of stealing fish, knocking other penguins out of the way to get food and flicking sand at the keepers. His behaviour has improved recently though.

Mr Mac - Mr Mac is 10 years old and was abandoned as a chick. He is a sweetie but tends to think he's better than everyone else, refusing to take fish from visitors if they're 'not worthy'.

Flip - Left flipper amputee, Flip is generally a well-behaved penguin. She is a good role model, swims well, eats nicely, stands up for her boyfriend when younger birds are picking on him and knows how to penguin well.

Dora - Dora was abandoned at only 5 days old and was brought to the National Aquarium where she grew up and is now very comfortable around humans. Last year Dora was often naughty pecking male keepers and needed escorting to and from the feed station.

Captain - Captain is one of the nicest penguins. He lost his right eye in an altercation with another sea bird and must be fed from his left side. He and Flip are together and share a burrow.