Same-sex penguin couple raising rare chick at U.K. zoo

Scampi and Flounder, a pair of male Humboldt penguins, are stepping up to raise a chick at Chester Zoo in the United Kingdom. 

The chick is one of 10 born during what zoo team manager Zoe Sweetman described in a Thursday news release as a “bumper year for the penguins here.” Humboldt penguins are one of the most at-risk of the world’s 17 species of penguins and are listed as vulnerable by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. There are now 63 penguins in the colony at the zoo.

Penguin pair Wotsit and Peach laid two of the eggs that hatched this year, according to the zoo. Experts at the zoo shared the eggs between the nests of Wotsit and Peach and Scampi and Flounder. 

“The zoo’s bird experts carefully shared the eggs between the two nests to help give both chicks the best possible start and help improve chances of successful fledging,” the zoo wrote in the news release. 

Penguin eggs are incubated for around 40 days and, once an egg is produced, it takes about three days before the chick hatches. 

While a zoo spokesperson said Scampi and Flounder have never hatched and raised a chick before, same-sex penguin couples are not unheard of. In 2018, two male penguins at the Sea Life Sydney Aquarium in Australia hatched a chick, and then in 2020, a pair of female penguins at an aquarium in Spain welcomed a baby chick. In 2022, a male penguin couple at a zoo in New York state became parents.

Penguin parents share feeding and parenting duties. Chester Zoo keepers provide fish, which the parents swallow and blend into a “protein-rich soup,” which they regurgitate to feed the chicks, according to the zoo.

Eight of the 10 penguins hatched at Chester Zoo this year have been named in the weeks since they hatched in April.

“This year we’ve gone with a celestial theme for naming the chicks and we’ve had a lot of fun coming up with names inspired by stars, constellations and cosmic wonders,” Sweetman said. 

The zoo is taking suggestions on social media before deciding on the names of two of the chicks, but has named the others: Ursa, Alcyone, Quasar, Orion, Dorado, Cassiopeia, Altair and Xena. Scampi and Flounder’s chick will have its name picked on social media. The zoo has not specified if the chick is male or female.

Since their births, the fluffy penguin chicks have nearly quadrupled in size, according to the zoo. 

“They’re now days away from a really exciting milestone — their very first swimming lessons, which is always a thrill to witness as they dive into the pool for the very first time,” Sweetman said. 

Humboldt penguins, native to South America, are vulnerable to climate change and habitat loss, according to the zoo. Population numbers have decreased by around 85% in the last 40 years.

“The penguin colony at Chester Zoo plays a vital role in the international breeding program for the species, helping to maintain a genetically healthy population in conservation zoos across Europe,” according to the zoo. 

Humboldt penguins are carnivores, eating small fish and crustaceans, according to the zoo. They spend up to 75% of their lives in water. They typically live 12 to 15 years, but can live up to 20 years in human care. Humboldt penguins typically weigh around 7 to 13 pounds, with their weight fluctuating based on food and whether or not they’re molting. They grow to be about 2 feet tall. Penguin chicks at the zoo are weighed to monitor their development.

Many penguins are monogamous, according to the zoo.