Penguins are apparently as easily amused as I am.
Penguin chick waddles into spotlight
At 8 weeks old, the baby penguin that flaunted its brilliant coat of indigo-colored feathers yesterday at the New England Aquarium is already full grown. The foot-tall bird weighed 2 to 3 pounds, and it will not get any bigger, no matter how many herring and smelt it eats.
That’s how the species, which is the tiniest in the world, earned the name little blue penguins. The aquarium has not determined the gender of the baby or given it a name.
Waddling for news cameras in its debut yesterday, the chick may have sparked jealousy in the 13 other little blues on exhibit, whose plumage has dulled and grayed with age.
The chick hatched April 6 from a golf-ball-size egg and had been kept separate from the other 60 penguins on exhibit, which include the 2-foot-tall African and rockhopper penguins. The pint-size little blues hail from Australia and New Zealand and make up for their small stature with loud barks, chirps, and squeaks, said Paul Leonard, the aquarium’s penguin specialist.
“Even though they are little ones, they act very big and tough,” Leonard said.
Penguin Dreams
We were at the grocery store last night and were passing by the bargain books bin when I saw this book. The very first thing that I noticed was that it was in the art style of J.otto Seibold. You know, the man who illustrated “Olive, the Other Reindeer.” Being the penguin lover that I am, I had to snatch up a copy of it. How could I resist for $3.99?
“Penguin Dreams” is about a penguin named Chongo Chingi (yeah, it does sound like a monkey’s name but who am I to judge?) who drifts off to sleep, wanting to fly. Soon thereafter, his dreams begin as he dives into the water but finds himself flying! His flight takes him over the zoo, into the sky and to outer space. The story itself isn’t very linear and at first you may think it doesn’t make much sense; however, do our dreams make sense sometimes?
The scenes go from stage to stage abruptly like any dream could do. It’s an interesting concept being used here. There aren’t too many words in this book although I think that the illustrations make up for that. The abstract style may seem to be too busy for your children but the muted colors tone that aspect down and should keep them interested.I’ll be reading this to my children tonight and we’ll see how they like it.
Friday Video: Chasing Penguins
You’ll have to visit the YouTube page for this one as the owner has requested not to allow embedding. Bet you didn’t realize penguins could move that fast on their feet.
615ft tanker vs. penguins. We had to break through a patch of ice and some penguins were standing around right where we broke through, which sent the penguins runnning around trying to get out of the way of our ship. Narration brought to you by Keegan Doig. Final score: Tanker 1, Penguins 0
Penguin chicks hatch at Edinburgh Zoo
Within the first few weeks of the breeding season, twenty-three penguin chicks have hatched at the Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland. One of the brood is a rockhopper penguin, the first in nearly four years at the zoo. Zoo officials say that this chick is doing very well and its parents are being quite attentive unlike the rockhopper penguins that hatched a chick back in 2003. The other twenty-two chicks are gentoos which have no issues with being bred in captivity like the rockhoppers do.
“We have an excellent breeding record for gentoos but it is more difficult to breed rockhoppers so we are really happy to have a healthy chick. It is still staying very close to its parents but will start venturing out itself in the next few weeks. Unfortunately, it’s still too early to find out what sex it is so we haven’t been able to name it yet.”
– Roslin Talbot, Head Keeper of Penguins at Edinburgh Zoo
Penguin Ice Cream at Baskin-Robbins
Inspired by the upcoming animated film, Surf’s Up, Baskin-Robbins is bringing its consumers a couple of tasty treats to… well, consume!
The two flavors are “Penguin Swirl” and “Splish Splash” which both sound like good flavors to try. Even though the Penguin Swirl is partly colored black, it’s not licorice, thank goodness. It’s actually a mixed berry flavor swirled with their own Tutti Frutti ice. Splish Splash looks like it will be scrumptious as well with its blue raspberry and blueberry combination. I hear they also have a special cone with a penguin frosted on its side.
These two flavors are for a limited time only and won’t be available after August 19th.
There aren’t many Baskin-Robbins near me. I can only think of two off-hand but one of them is close by work so I may need to head out there on a lunch break soon!
Penguin Geek 