New London Home For Antarctic Penguins

2011-05-19

Nine Gentoo penguins have taken up residence at the new Sea-Life Aquarium in the center of London.

The penguins arrived 8 days ago from Edinburgh Zoo to start their new life in the Antarctic-themed adventure area of the Aquarium which opened on May 18th.

As a group of children helped to tear down a wall of artificial ice blocks, General Manager of the Aquarium Toby Forer described how pleased he was with the latest additions.

[Toby Forer, General Manager, Sea Life London Aquarium]:
"The Gentoo Penguins are fabulous. They're very streamlined. They're fast- swimming, they're very sociable animals. And here we've got a few breeding pairs as well. So we're very excited about a breeding program for the future."

Gentoo penguins can exceed speeds of 22 miles per hour in the water and are able to dive to a depth of around 550 feet.

An adult male Gentoo Penguin can reach a height of 36 inches making it the third largest penguin species.

The new penguin area is open to the public during normal opening hours of the Aquarium.

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