Penguin chick arrives at Adventure Aquarium – just in time for the New Year!

Meet our very own ‘Baby New Year!’ We’re thrilled to announce that a brand new African penguin chick arrived at Adventure Aquarium on Sunday, January 5, having hatched overnight to parents Minnie and Kamikaze.

Late Saturday, Aquarium biologists knew that a hatching was imminent, having heard soft “pipping” sounds from inside the egg as the chick readied itself to hatch by chipping away at its shell. Sure enough, biologists arrived Sunday morning to see that the little chick had hatched overnight!

And at a healthy 72 grams (2.5 ounces), it’s doing exceedingly well – strong, vibrant, vocal and very mobile for only being about a day old. To give you a size comparison, the penguin is so tiny that it can fit in the palm of your hand!

This chick is Minnie and Kamikaze’s 7^th since they became a breeding pair, and will be the 4^th of theirs to call Adventure Aquarium home, along with siblings Myer, Jack and Jambo. Three of the pair’s other chicks were sent to other facilities across the country as part of the AZA’s Species Survival Program breeding recommendations. So the new chick has relatives across the country!

With this new addition, 2014 is sure to be a monumental year for Minnie and Kamikaze. A year that could quite possibly top the excitement of 2013, during which their ‘grandchicks’ Pumpkin and Patch hatched to parents Jack and Diane! Pumpkin and Patch make their official public debut this weekend during Adventure Aquarium’s Celebrity Penguin Weekend, January 11-12.

So what’s next on our newest arrival’s agenda? Tomorrow marks the chick’s first checkup with Adventure Aquarium vets, and it will go through daily weigh-ins with our biologists, who will ensure that the chick continues to thrive.