The single bird arrived from a wildlife rehabilitation center in Hoquiam, in the state of Washington. The bird was found far out of its native range (perhaps it had been stowed away on a ship) and it went on display at the zoo in late 2011. It is supposedly the only one in captivity in North America, and it can be found in the Humboldt Penguin habitat.
I saw the attached bird at Busch Wildlife Sanctuary this week; it was unlabelled but looks very like a juvenile Brown Booby to me (certainly not a Northern Gannet, which would be the only possible 'normal zoo bird' option!), so it looks like the North American population may have doubled!
I saw the attached bird at Busch Wildlife Sanctuary this week; it was unlabelled but looks very like a juvenile Brown Booby to me (certainly not a Northern Gannet, which would be the only possible 'normal zoo bird' option!), so it looks like the North American population may have doubled!