Each year, a little penguin shows his former caretaker unconditional loyalty and love.
What Happened:
A retired bricklayer named Joao Pereira de Souza found a little penguin covered in oil and lying on the rocks at a beach by Joao's home. The man cleaned the penguin, named him Dindim, and fed him fish for about a week until the animal regained his strength.
Joao thought the right thing to do would be to return the penguin to the wild. But Dindim had other ideas and wouldn't leave. Dindim stayed with Joao for several more months. But then, when the penguin grew new feathers, he left.
Joao wasn't sure where Dindim went, but the penguin wasn't gone for long. After a couple of months, Joao saw Dindim at the same beach where they first met. Dindim followed Joao home and stayed with him for several more months. And then he left again.
"He arrives in June and leaves to go home in February, and every year he becomes more affectionate, as he appears even happier to see me," Pereira de Souza told TV Globo.
A Yearly Cycle of Dindim Leaving and Coming Home:
The cycle of Dindim leaving and coming home has repeated itself for four years. Dindim arrives, stays for months at a time, and then leaves again.
The penguin who returns has been identified as Dindim because scientists have put a tag on his leg.
João Paulo Krajewski, a biologist, told CNN:
“Dindim definitely knows where he is going...since for four consecutive years he goes, by himself, to the very same spot on Mr. João’s backyard.”
Where Dindim goes remains a mystery. Some theorize that he leaves for breeding grounds. But one thing has been certain - he keeps coming back to Joao. Here's a video on Twitter of Dindim and Joao together.
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