Humboldt penguin chick at Woodland Park Zoo photo by Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo

Woodland Park Zoo delivers the exciting news that their Humboldt penguins have adopted to their new home well home well enough that they’ve started breeding. Six total eggs in three nests have arrived for the first breeding and nesting season since the new penguin habitat opened last May.

One of the eggs has already hatched to reveal the first offpsring for penguins Dora and PJ: another egg is expected to hatch shortly.

“This hatching is significant for the penguin Species Survival Plan,” said Mark Myers, a Woodland Park Zoo curator who specializes in birds. “Humboldt penguins are an endangered species and here at the zoo these birds are important conservation ambassadors to teach visitors about the impacts humans have on penguins in their range countries.” Species Survival Plans (SSPs) are cooperative breeding programs that work to ensure genetic diversity and demographic stability in North American zoos and aquariums.”

“We are cautiously optimistic that the chicks will thrive under the care of their parents,” noted Myers. As part of the animal care protocols for penguin chicks, staff will attempt to weigh the hatchlings daily for the first five days or so. “As long as the chicks are achieving acceptable weight gains, they will remain under the care of their parents. Our goal is to minimize staff intervention and allow the parents to raise their chicks and gain experience as parents.” If necessary, keepers might offer supplemental feedings to chicks that fall behind the weight curve or if there is a large age difference between siblings.

The penguins arrived at WPZ last spring as part of a SSP for the purposes of creating a breeding colony. Not all of the penguins have recommendations to breed but additional breeding penguins are arriving in April and May to help grow the colony even more. Candles and soft music probably won’t help, but what will is your paid attendance at the zoo and/or your donation to their programs. A mere 12,000 Humboldt penguins are estimated to live in the wild, their population having been decimated by overfishing of anchovies, which they eat, and the over harvesting of guano, which they use to build their homes. Woodland Park Zoo is committed to conserving Humboldt penguins by supporting the Humboldt Penguin Conservation Center at Punta San Juan, breeding endangered penguins through the Species Survival Plan, and encouraging visitors to choose sustainable seafood options

The Humboldt penguin SSP is among 39 SSPs that Woodland Park Zoo participates in, including the western lowland gorilla, ocelot, Komodo dragon and red panda. Under the auspices of AZA, SSPs also involve a variety of other collaborative conservation activities such as research, public education, reintroduction and field projects.