SCHNECKSVILLE, Pa. - Don the penguin, is a tough old bird but she's had a rough few months.

She was living happily with her colony in a zoo in Michigan, right alongside her BFF, her sister Dewey. But then, life happened, and Don's best friend got a boyfriend, and Don felt shut out.

"She wasn't getting along very well with their penguins," explains Rich Rosevear, the General Curator at the Lehigh Valley Zoo.

So the zoo staff in Michigan made a very tough decision about their favorite penguin. They gave her a goodbye sendoff, complete with a frozen fish cake, and sent her here, to the Lehigh Valley Zoo.

Rosevear says Don's settling in well.

"We're trying out here and so far she's been doing very well!"

The old zoo is hoping that with all the eligible bachelors at her new zoo, Don herself will soon fall in love. The staff tried to set her up with a pal right away, but it's possible our penguin might be playing hard to get.

"Not that she avoids him," Rosevear says, "But she doesn't specifically stay with him."

Penguins are beautiful creatures, not always the most graceful, but beautiful. And these African-black-footed penguins aren't just here because they're cute.

"They're in trouble in the wild, and these programs are to help keep them healthy," Rosevear explains.

And a happy penguin, is a healthy one - and it's important that Don, shake it all off, and keep pressing forward. So, welcome to the Lehigh Valley, Don. Feel free to spread your wings and stay a while.


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