§ Mr. Tony Banksasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the likely cause of the unusually high concentration of lead in the tissue of dead penguins found in the Falklands; and if he will make a statement.
371W
§ Mr. EggarInvestigations by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food's investigation centre at Norwich are continuing. An explanation of the likely cause of the high concentration of lead in the tissue of the dead rockhopper penguins is not yet available.
§ Mr. Tony Banksasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many dead rockhopper penguins have been counted in the Falkland Islands in connection with the current outbreak of puffinosis; and what other types of penguin have been affected.
§ Mr. EggarThere are roughly 4 million penguins in the Falklands. The colonies of rockhopper penguins are widely separated and many are on remote sites. No comprehensive count has been possible of either living or dead birds. The Falkland Islands Government have received no evidence to indicate that other types of penguins have been affected by puffinosis.