Four Penguin Chicks Hatch at the Zoo!

Photo's by Ted Fox

The Rosamond Gifford Zoo is happy to announce the first hatchings of four Humboldt penguin chicks at the zoo's new penguin Coast Exhibit.  The first chick hatched on Saturday, April 22, weighing 94 grams.  The second chick hatched on Monday, April 24, weighing 74 grams.  The third chick on April 25th weighing 89 grams and the fourth followed on April 27th weighing 93 grams. 

The chicks have not yet been named and the genders have not yet been determined.  Frederico and Danta, which came to Syracuse from the Brookfield Zoo, were incubating the first two eggs.  Carmen, who came to us from San Diego Sea World and Phil who arrived from the Philadelphia Zoo incubated the third and fourth eggs. These penguin couples paired while at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo's new Penguin Coast Exhibit, which opened in June 2005. 

Humboldt penguin chicks do not begin to explore their environments until around 45 days of age.  The penguin chicks will remain in the nesting box with their parents until that time.  They do not acquire all of their waterproofing plumage until approximately 90 days of age.  The zoo keepers will closely monitor the health and progress of these newly hatched chicks.

Courtesy of Video Technologies, a video loop of the progress and development of the chicks will be continuously running in the zoo’s main lobby. This video will be updated every Friday with new footage.

The zoo’s Humboldt penguin colony is now comprised of 23 birds including 10 females, 9 males, and the four newly hatched chicks. The penguins are viewable in both their indoor and outdoor enclosures.

Hot New Penguin Pair!!!

A hot new penguin pair has decided to partake in a little romance at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo!

Wylie is a male Humboldt penguin who came to Syracuse from the Columbus Zoo.  He has a red and blue band on his right flipper.  Wylie is a very mellow guy with a lot of class and table manners that are top notch!  He arrived at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo only a few months ago and had been scoping out the ladies from afar.  However, it now seems that he has found his mate in Mara! 

They have been allopreening quite often and mating several times a day. They have also chosen a nest box in the indoor area of the penguin exhibit to the right of the window. Wylie and Mara spend most of their time in the nest box, except for when they are eating and bathing. They are adding pebbles to their nest box and are standing guard in front of their newly chosen home! The "In the Colony" soap opera continues......

Mara is the friendly type, except when it comes to keeper calves. She's an ankle-biter true to heart.  However, she seems to have a soft spot for Wylie! She came to Syracuse from Sea World San Diego and has a red and white band on her left flipper.

 

 

Click here to see updated personality profiles on all of our nineteen Humboldt penguins! You can also see how the penguin soap opera is progressing and which penguins are now the hot couples in the colony!