Penguins go public at their new home

Saturday, April 07, 2012

 

It was a big day for the Bourton-on-the-Water attraction as the birds were introduced to its existing 14-strong group of penguins. SETTLING IN: The new penguins check out their surroundings as they make their way to the park after emerging from quarantine

BIRDLAND staff breathed a huge sigh of relief as six king penguins emerged safely and happily from quarantine.

The new arrivals had spent the last three weeks in quarantine after making a temporary move from Edinburgh Zoo, while its penguin pool undergoes major repairs.
Simon Blackwell, Birdland's general manager, said: "It went much better than expected. There could have been a lot of fighting but we didn't see any of that at all."
To the delight of Mr Blackwell and his colleagues, the king penguins made the 500m trip into the enclosure holding the rest of the penguins at a remarkably quick rate.
He said: "One of them decided to move a lot faster and the others followed. It could have taken between 30 and 40 minutes but only took eight minutes.
"They went into the enclosure and have accepted each other incredibly well."
Hundreds of people turned up to see the penguins and other birds at the site yesterday.
The king penguins will be there for at least six months and it will be the only place to see the popular birds in the UK.

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