Aurelie Marrier d'Unienville & T. Trenchard/Panos

The body of an African penguin lies on a necropsy table in the post mortem room of the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds. The bird was euthanised after a foot infection became untreatable. Scientists say that a lack of food has left many African penguins with weakened immune systems that makes them increasingly vulnerable to infections and disease. African penguin numbers have plummeted in recent years, with models predicting they could be functionally extinct in the wild within the next 15 years.