On International Penguin Day, January 20th the Saginaw Children’s Zoo had their own tiny celebration – the hatching of an African penguin chick! It has taken several years of careful planning, many science-guided decisions, and plenty of patience to successfully welcome this new arrival.
The chick hatched early Sunday morning and is healthy and strong. Due to round-the-clock care and near constant feeding from its parents, Petey (mom) and Robben (dad), the chick more than tripled in size in just over a week. Gender determination of young birds, especially penguins, is difficult without a DNA sample to be sent for testing. The DNA results determined the penguin chick is a girl!