How cute….The zoo team at Sewerby Hall and Gardens are delighted to announce the arrival of a healthy, female Humboldt penguin chick.
Popular resident penguins Sigsbee and Twinnie are once again proud parents, making for yet another adorable addition to Sewerby Hall and Garden’s Zoo.
The zoo team were unsure whether Twinnie would lay an egg this year as she is now 23 years of age, however staff were overjoyed to find that Twinnie had laid an egg on Tuesday, 4 March.
Both parents have taken it in turns sitting on the egg and the team were pleased to discover that the chick had hatched on Tuesday, 15 April. Sigsbee and Twinnie have once again proven to be great parents, feeding and caring for the chick.
The chick left the nest on Saturday, 21 June to explore her surroundings for the first time and have a swim in the pool.
The public are being given the exciting opportunity to choose the name of the new chick from a selection put forward by the zoo team. The options are:
Winnie: In honour of her remarkable Mum ‘Twinnie’ who has done a fantastic job of rearing the next generation of the penguin colony for the past 4 years at Sewerby and continues to amaze the team at the grand age of 23. Without her none of this would be possible.
Pebble: The new chick is the smallest penguin in the colony in contrast to her big brother Bumble who is by far the biggest. Pebble is tiny and grey like a pebble. It also fits in with the names of older big siblings Pickle, Crackle and Bumble.
Visitors can comment on the social media post to vote for their favourite name. The winning name will then be announced at a later date.
Head zookeeper John Pickering said: ‘’We are pleased to say that the chick is doing great and loves swimming with her siblings Pickle, Crackle and Bumble.
‘’Our penguins are extremely popular with visitors and we are certain that our new penguin will add even more personality to our ever-growing penguin family here at the zoo.’’
Humboldt penguins are classed as vulnerable to extinction, so the new arrival has been greeted with great enthusiasm.
The last chick born at the zoo was Bumble in the Spring of 2024. Bumble, along with all his siblings, is happy and healthy and continuing to thrive within the zoo.
For opening times and admission prices to the zoo see: Zoo
Information on feeding times, animal encounters and much more is also available through the link.
To see latest on what Sewerby Hall and Gardens has to offer this summer, visit: Summer of Fun
