Same-sex penguin couple hatch and raise chick at Chester Zoo
The new arrivals belong to the highly threatened Humboldt breed, one of the most at risk species of penguins in the world.
They are native to the rocky coastal shores of Peru and Chile and can reach speeds of up to 25mph in the water.
The chicks began hatching in April this year and have spent their first few weeks of life tucked away in their nest burrows.
One of the chicks is being raised by a same-sex penguin couple, Scampi and Flounder, after the keepers shared out eggs between nests to help improve chances of successful fledging.
The chicks are now said to be just 'days away' from taking their very first swimming lessons at the zoo's Penguin Island habitat - a special milestone where they'll be seen taking to the water alongside their parents.
As part of a long-standing zoo tradition, conservationists pick a different naming theme for the chicks each year.
Previous topics have included chocolate bars, brands of crisps and even NHS heroes during the Covid-19 pandemic.
This year's cohort have been named after stars and celestial wonders, with keepers dubbing eight of the chicks Ursa, Alcyone, Quasar, Orion, Dorado, Cassiopeia, Altair and Xena.
The final two chicks are yet to be named, with the public being asked to help choose.
Zoe Sweetman, Team Manager of Penguins at Chester Zoo, said:
'Ten chicks hatching in one season marks a bumper year for the penguins here."
"It's fantastic news for the species and a brilliant success for the international conservation breeding programme."
"The fluffy new arrivals are all being looked after brilliantly by their parents, having nearly quadrupled in size since they first emerged."
'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."
'In what has been one of our long standing traditions, each year we pick a fun theme to help name our chicks, which helps us keep track of who is who now that there are 63 penguins in the colony."
"But we've saved the final two names for the public, who can help us choose via the zoo's social media channels.'
Humboldt penguins are listed as vulnerable to extinction by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Found on the rocky coastal shores of Peru and Chile, they face a number of threats in the wild, including climate change, overfishing and rising ocean temperatures.
These factors are reducing the availability of fish and forcing the penguins to travel further from their nests to find food, which increases the risk of survival to both adults and their chicks.
The penguin colony at Chester Zoo plays a vital role in the international breeding programme for the species, helping to maintain a genetically healthy population in conservation zoos across Europe.
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Sunday Post
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Daily Mirror
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