A penguin named Pingu somehow made it from Antarctica to New Zealand: An 1,800-mile journey

Ever take a wrong turn while on your way to the store or a friend's house? This Adélie penguin did something like that, except it ended up more than 1,800 miles from home.

Pingu, as locals have dubbed the penguin, was first spotted walking on the beach in New Zealand by Harry Singh, who later posted videos of the black and white bird to Facebook Wednesday. Adélie penguins are only found in Antarctica.

"The penguin is a young bird, which was fatigued and resting on the beach, reluctant to return to sea. The penguin is now in care at Christchurch Penguin Rehabilitation, which is managed by Thomas and Kristina Stracke, in conjunction with the South Island Wildlife Hospital," wrote the Kaikoura Wildlife Hospital in a Facebook post on Thursday.

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The penguin was released Friday morning, according to a post from New Zealand's Department of Conservation Facebook page.

David Ainley, an ecologist and expert on Adélie penguins, said these birds often travel far during the non-breeding season. But the likelihood of it showing up in New Zealand is unusual because of how small the island nation is.

"More than likely there are quite a few more that stray away from the sea ice that rings Antarctica but don’t get near to civilization," Ainely said.

Pingu is only the third of his kind in recorded history to be found in New Zealand. The body of a deceased penguin was found in Dec. 1962. A second sighting occurred in Jan. 1993 when a live Adélie penguin was spotted around 140 miles north of where Pingu was found, according to the Department of Conservation.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lost penguin travels to New Zealand from Antarctica in 1,800-mile trek