Penguin
Special Adoption - Celebrate our 40th birthday and the opening of our newly refurbished penguin exhibit with a special penguin adoption for £40. This is £10 less than the usual cost of a General adoption and is available for a limited period only.
In the wild
Scientific name: Spheniscus humboldti
Status: Classified as Vulnerable (2008)
Distribution: Coastal Peru and Chile
Type: Bird
Diet: Piscivore
At Marwell Wildlife
The penguins are fed a diet of herring twice a day. As part of an enrichment programme the fish are sometimes placed in large water bottles, similar to those found in offices, and turned upside down in the water for the fish to fall out. This encourages the penguins to look for their food in their pool.
About Humboldt Penguins
As with all penguins, the Humboldt’s are both flightless and aquatic. Unlike other birds, penguins have solid, heavy bones. They have a modified bone structure in their wings allowing them to ‘fly’ under the water. They use their tails and webbed feet as rudders.
Penguins are highly social birds and have a well developed system of communication, both visual and vocal. Individual calls are distinguishable, enabling partners to recognise each other and their chicks in the midst of the colony. The Humboldt has 3 main calls – a contact call, a display call and a threat call.
Threats to penguins in the wild include; egg collecting, disturbance, habitat destruction, predation and pollution.
Special Penguin Adoption from £40.00
Our General Adoption scheme includes all this:
- A special Adoption Certificate
- Recognition at your adopted animal's home
- A photo of a Penguin
- A day passto Marwell Wildlife
- An annual subscription to Marwell News
- Penguin fact sheet
- Presentation folder
- Car sticker
- Access to online Adopters Zone
Want to help even more? Choose Premium Adoption below!