When an oil spill off the coast of South Africa jeopardized an entire population of penguins, an urgent call for help was sent around the world. It was a tragic day when an ore carrier developed a hole and sank six miles offshore, spilling over a thousand tons of oil into the ocean. The resulting slick quickly hit Robben and Dassen Islands — both major breeding sites for African penguins. To make matters worse, the spill occurred in the middle of the penguins' breeding season, putting thousands of birds at risk. Saving a Species: The Great Penguin Rescue, hosted and narrated by actor Elijah Wood, follows aviculturists and thousands of volunteers as they rally together in a race against time to try and save these oiled birds, including vulnerable penguin chicks. In the end, their efforts saved over 43,000 penguins, making this the largest and most successful bird rescue to date and proving that caring people can work together to save a species.

Catch Saving a Species: The Great Penguin Rescue on Sunday, November 19 at 6:30pm ET, with an encore at 9pm ET — Only on Discovery Kids!