A waddle of penguins has stopped a $2.5bn (£1.9bn) mining project in Chile.
The creatures, which have been protected since 1990, live in the National Humboldt Penguin Reserve, in the Coquimbo Region, almost 300 miles north of the capital, Santiago.
Andes Iron had planned to build a mine and a port near the site, where it planned to churn out up to 12 million tonnes of copper and ore every year.
But the company's planning permission was challenged by Oceana, a conservation and advocacy organisation.
The National Humboldt Penguin Reserve is made up of the islands of Dama, Choros and Gaviota, a nature trail which attracts whale, sea-lion and penguin watchers.
Oceana argued that a rise in the number ships in the region would put the area at a greater risk of oil spills.
Chilean environmental officials agreed and rejected the plan in March. Andes Iron appealed but its proposal was rejected in August, by ministers concerned about the penguins' welfare.
Local groups in the Coquimbo Region were split down the middle over the decision by Michelle Bachelet's sociallist government.
Rodrigo Flores, vice-president of the fisherman's union in nearby Punta Choros, owns a tour company that runs trips to the islands.
Welcoming the ruling, he told the Agence France Presse (AFP) news agency the planned mine was "an invasive project, for nature and for society."
He added: "It is incompatible with a place considered a hotspot of biodiversity at the global level."
But in La Higuera, a local community in the Coquimbo Region, others said that ministers should have ruled in favour of the mine which promised to bring thousands of jobs to the economically depressed region.
Joyce Aguirre said: "Every project has an impact. We want to be vigilant and watch what's going to happen. We are the ones who live here and we would never want to damage the area."
Andes Iron has vowed to fight on in its legal battle and take its case to Chile’s highest court if necessary.
