Wiinterrr's Day: Syracuse zoo's baby penguin named 'Filomena'

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Syracuse zoo's baby penguin named 'Filomena'

By Michelle Breidenbach
June 17, 2014

A primary penguin keeper holds the newest Humboldt chick during a press conference at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse on Tuesday, June 3, 2014. The conference was held to introduce the chick, which is the 39th hatched at the zoo. (Kate Collins | syracuse.com)

The newest Humboldt penguin chick checks out the surroundings as primary penguin keeper Deb Tobin, left, and Onondaga County Executive Joanie Mahoney look on during a press conference to introduce the female chick at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo on Tuesday, June 3, 2014, in Syracuse. The chick, which hatched April 16th, is the 39th to hatch at the zoo. (Kate Collins | syracuse.com)

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The new penguin chick at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo will be called Filomena, the zoo announced Tuesday.

The zoo held a contest to name the chick and narrowed the list down to five for online voting. The other names were Dahlia, Francesca, Graciela and Solana.

Filomena rose to the top with 27 percent of the 1,107 total, said Onondaga County Executive Joanie Mahoney.

Sue Engel, of Dryden, submitted the name. It means "greatly loved" in Spanish.

The zoo staff likes to choose Latin-American names to reflect the heritage of Humboldt penguins, which are named for a cold nutrient-rich current that flows along the western coast of South America.
The penguin hatched April 16.

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