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.
