A penguin chick discovered on a New Zealand runway by a pilot preparing for takeoff has been rescued and released into the wild.

The six-week-old korora penguin was recovered from the landing strip at Wellington Airport and taken to a nearby zoo as passengers patiently waited.

The fledgling was spotted by an Air Chathams pilot in January after reportedly slipping through the fencing surrounding the runway.

In a post on social media, Wellington Airport said: “The pilot and passengers patiently waited while Wellington Airport staff raced out to collect and help the visitor.”

They added: “We took our little friend to The Nest at Wellington Zoo to recover, and we’ve done some penguin proofing to our fences to keep our flippered friends out of trouble in future.”

The airport reported that runway sensors were recording a temperature of 50 degrees at the time of the rescue, with passengers not “particularly happy” about the intense heat. 

After being transported to Wellington Zoo, the bird was placed on a high-calorie diet to facilitate weight gain and encouraged to swim in saltwater pools to prepare the fledgling for its reintroduction into the wild. 

The chick was then released at Lyall Bay, a popular surfing beach in southern Wellington, on Friday. 

Korora penguins, also known as little penguins, are rarely seen on land, generally only coming ashore at night, according to New Zealand’s Department of Conservation. 

Their populations have been decreasing across New Zealand in recent years, with some colonies becoming completely extinct or facing risk of eradication, but they are not considered endangered.