Leopard's killing of rare African penguins sparks conservation debate

Some conservationists say endangered birds at the South African reserve take priority, but others argue that locally the big cat is rarer

A leopard killed dozens of endangered penguins at a nature reserve outside Cape Town earlier this month, prompting a renewed debate about how best to protect South Africa's threatened species.

Ranger Cuan McGeorge found the bloodied, lifeless bodies of 33 African penguins on 11 June scattered across Stony Point, a reserve at the sleepy holiday town of Betty's Bay that protects one of just four mainland breeding sites.