Turtle Back Zoo welcomes two new penguins
‘Cookies' and ‘Cream' join seven other pairs at one of the zoo's most popular exhibits
Mention penguins and Essex County isn't the first location that comes to mind, but the county's Turtle Back Zoo has welcomed two more of the nattily attired visitors.
County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo Jr. was on hand to finally introduce the newcomers by name, Cookies and Cream. The new monikers were the top choices among hundreds of suggestions submitted by visitors over the past month.
The new additions actually hail from Denver, where they were born in a penguin species survival and breeding program. They bring to eight the number of pairs living at Turtle Back's Penguin Coast exhibit, designed to mimic the rugged coast of southern Africa, which is their species' native land. The Zoological Society of New Jersey donated money for the project.
"Penguin Coast is one of the most popular exhibits at Turtle Back Zoo, and we are proud to have partnered with the Zoological Society to upgrade conditions at the exhibit two years ago," DiVincenzo said.
Also called the black-footed penguin, the birds are native to Namibia and South Africa. They grow to a little more than two feet tall and weigh from 4½ to 11 pounds. They once known as "jackass penguins," because of their braying call, but that is common to some other penguins.
Humans devastated the African penguins over the past century. Destruction of habitat, theft of their eggs and petrochemical spills caused a 90 percent population loss since 1910. But people have shown signs of evolving better behavior.
In 2000, a massive rescue was mounted after an ore tanker sank off South Africa and spread oil onto thousands of adult birds at the height of breeding season. Rescue workers saved 19,500 birds, cleaned and moved them to safer waters.
Aside from greeting their adoring public, Cookies and Cream were busy settling in to their new home, which includes a large swimming area especially useful in a New Jersey summer.
Essex County created the nation's first county park system in 1895, and opened the zoo in 1963 in South Mountain Reservation.
Turtle Back Zoo is open Mondays to Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Regular admission is $6 for children and senior citizens, $9 for adults and free for children under 2 years. For additional information, please call 973-731-5800.
— JOE TYRRELL, NEWJERSEYNESROOM.COM
No comments:
Post a Comment