A little blue penguin scored itself an own goal last week when the kororā found itself entangled in a 10-year-old's football net in a New Plymouth garden.
Ezra Tomlinson, 10, spotted the bird caught in his goal net in the family's back garden last week.
His grandmother Jackie said the discovery prompted an immediate response.
"My husband jumped out of bed and we headed down the lawn to check it out," she said.
The family cut the penguin free, wrapped it in a towel and placed it in a box before calling the DOC hotline for advice.
Ezra started school late the following morning after the family took the bird to New Plymouth Vets for further treatment.
"It was a pretty cool experience for him to be able to see the penguin, then take that story to school," Jackie said.
The family, who live near East End Reserve, were struck by how far the bird had travelled to end up in their garden.
"It had walked up the beach, across boulders, the carpark, up a bank, over the railway line, and under our gate before it finally blundered into Ezra's football net in the dark," Jackie said.
DOC programme lead marine and compliance Cam Hunt retrieved the unharmed penguin from the vets and released it at a nearby beach.
He said the family had handled the situation perfectly.
"Some terrific naturing by Jackie and the team to swing into action and help out this penguin — it was a great effort."
At this time of year, kororā come ashore to nest and mate, and have been known to walk up to 1.5km inland in search of a nesting spot.
Earlier this year, an injured kororā was plucked to safety from busy lanes on the Auckland Harbour Bridge.
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