A penguin chick is thriving in his new habitat at the Calgary Zoo and officials say the chick is the first Humboldt to hatch at the facility.
The little seabird arrived on June 26 and the zoo says he has spent the first month in the burrow close to his first-time parents, Reina and Javier.
“It’s really special because it’s the first Humbolt that we bred here at Calgary Zoo. Also the parents are first-time parents. The female is really young. She only joined us last year so it’s really glad for us to know that she’s happy enough to have settled to pick a pair, to build a nest and lay an egg and incubate the chick and do such a great job so it’s a personal success in terms of keeping them in captivity” said Dr. Malu Celli, Curator, Calgary Zoo.
Dr. Celli says the penguin chick is growing fast and doing well.
“They’re very protective so it took us a while to get our first glimpse of the little one and they’re feeding it tons, taking turns, fifty-fifty, so dad is doing a great job too. The chick is growing strength to strength every day so hopefully when he fledges everybody will be able to see him,” she said.
Humboldt penguins are listed as vulnerable by the IUCN and the hatching of the little bird helps to safeguard the species from becoming extinct.
“This hatch is a significant boost for our captive Humboldt population,” said Dr. Celli. “When these kinds of births occur it assures us we are getting one step closer to helping save important species.”
The zoo says one Humboldt egg was laid in the past but it was infertile.
“We haven’t had a ton of nests and a ton of eggs but it’s how it’s supposed to be. It’s a very young colony, none of them have been parents before, so it’s a learning process for them but all the right steps are there and we have no reason to believe that we won’t continue to be successful in the future,” said Celli.
For more information on the Calgary Zoo’s Penguin Plunge, click HERE.
