Are there an innovative penguin exhibits yet to be built?

DavidBrown

DavidBrown

Well-Known Member
15+ year member
Are there any innovative penguin exhibits yet to be built?

In North America one of the zoo exhibit trends seems to be new penguin exhibits, both indoor polar penguin extravaganzas and temperate (and indoor) exhibits for South African and South American species.

This got me wondering about some things:
1. How many of the 18 penguin species are in captivity somewhere in the world? Galapagos penguins seem no longer to be in any zoos or aquariums (or are they?). Are there any others not in zoos or aquariums?

2. There seem to be basic penguin exhibit models that show up over and over. Is there anybody creating penguin exhibits out of the box or have we pretty much seen the extent that it is possible to innovate for penguins given the temperature and hydrological constraints in displaying the species?

You have the outdoor model for non-polar species like South African or Humboldt. The Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle has an excellent outdoor Humboldt penguin exhibit that replicates the Peruvian coast. It has a deep, long pool for them to swim in with underwater viewing. Some zoos have the same basic set up indoors like the Minnesota Zoo and California Academy of Sciences do for African penguins. Many zoos have less fancy versions of this model without underwater viewing.

You have the indoor model for polar penguins that replicates the temperatures and light regime of their native Antarctic and sub-Antarctic homelands. This approach was pioneered with Penguin Encounter at Sea World San Diego and now exists at many zoos and aquariums like Omaha, St. Louis, Kansas City, etc.

A twist on this is putting visitors in the same frigid conditions as the penguins as is now done at Sea World Orlando, Calgary, St. Louis, etc. Some zoos now also innovate by building tunnels so people can watch penguins swim above or below visitors in addition to traditional underwater viewing.

Is there anything new going on in the world of penguin exhibit development beyond these models?

3. Has anybody here had any memorable encounters with penguins in the wild? What species have you seen?
 
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DavidBrown said:
In North America one of the zoo exhibit trends seems to be new penguin exhibits, both indoor polar penguin extravaganzas and temperate (and indoor) exhibits for South African and South American species.

This got me wondering about some things:
1. How many of the 18 penguin species are in captivity somewhere in the world? Galapagos penguins seem no longer to be in any zoos or aquariums (or are they?). Are there any others not in zoos or aquariums?

2. There seem to be basic penguin exhibit models that show up over and over. Is there anybody creating penguin exhibits out of the box or have we pretty much seen the extent that it is possible to innovate for penguins given the temperature and hydrological constraints in displaying the species?

You have the outdoor model for non-polar species like South African or Humboldt. The Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle has an excellent outdoor Humboldt penguin exhibit that replicates the Peruvian coast. It has a deep, long pool for them to swim in with underwater viewing. Some zoos have the same basic set up indoors like the Minnesota Zoo and California Academy of Sciences do for African penguins. Many zoos have less fancy versions of this model without underwater viewing.

You have the indoor model for polar penguins that replicates the temperatures and light regime of their native Antarctic and sub-Antarctic homelands. This approach was pioneered with Penguin Encounter at Sea World San Diego and now exists at many zoos and aquariums like Omaha, St. Louis, Kansas City, etc.

A twist on this is putting visitors in the same frigid conditions as the penguins as is now done at Sea World Orlando, Calgary, St. Louis, etc. Some zoos now also innovate by building tunnels so people can watch penguins swim above or below visitors in addition to traditional underwater viewing.

Is there anything new going on in the world of penguin exhibit development beyond these models?

3. Has anybody here had any memorable encounters with penguins in the wild? What species have you seen?
Click to expand...

I think there are a couple of other penguin species not in captivity (or at least not on display in captivity), including Yellow-eyed Penguin, Snares Penguin and Royal Penguin (happy to be wrong!).

I think that Woodland Park Zoo's exhibit is the best I have seen, although outdoor exhibits at San Diego Sea World, Melbourne Zoo and even London Zoo are very good displays. Indoor ones usually appear too small, and are quite disappointing, e.g. London SEA LIFE Aquarium, Monterey Bay Aquarium and the California Academy of Sciences.

Innovation might show itself at San Diego Zoo when Africa Rocks' penguin exhibit is unveiled, given they are supposed to be housed outdoors with sharks.
 
The following species of penguins are housed in captivity in sustainable numbers:

Emperor
King
Gentoo (both subspecies)
Adelie
Chinstrap
Macaroni
Northern Rockhopper
Southern Rockhopper
Magellanic
Humboldt
African
Little Blue (Australian and New Zealand subspecies)

Fijordland crested, White flippered and Eastern Rockhoppers also have some individuals in captivity, but not in sustainable numbers.

So that would leave Yellow Eyed, Snares, Erect Crested, and Royal not represented in captivty.
 
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This is an interesting thread as I've often declared that penguins are zoo "superstars" as they are immensely popular and at times extremely active attractions. I've personally been mesmerized by the chilly environments at Calgary Zoo and Saint Louis Zoo, where it seems possible to easily reach over and actually touch a penguin as guests are in close proximity to the birds. Detroit Zoo opens its Penguinarium in the next few months, and the 33,000 sq. ft. building is larger than most aquariums and the zoo has sent out press releases with statements like this:

"When the facility opens in early 2016, it will be the largest penguin facility in the world, home to more than 80 penguins of four species – gentoo, macaroni, rockhopper and king." - from Oct. 2nd, 2015 press release

In the same press release there is an emphasis on the visitor experience:

"Visitors will descend a series of ramps as they are surrounded by 4-D effects, including arctic blasts, waves, snow and iceberg “calving” – a phenomenon where icebergs split, sending massive cascades of ice crashing into the sea."
 
Hyak_II said:
The following species of penguins are housed in captivity in sustainable numbers:

Emperor
King
Gentoo (both subspecies)
Adelie
Chinstrap
Macaroni
Northern Rockhopper
Southern Rockhopper
Magellanic
Humboldt
African
Little Blue (Australian subspecies only)

Fijordland crested and Eastern Rockhoppers also have some individuals in captivity, but not in sustainable numbers.

So that would leave Yellow Eyed, Snares, Erect Crested, and Royal (white flippered too, if you consider it a different species)not represented in captivty.
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Not sure what you consider to be sustainable numbers, but there are over 40 Little Blue Penguins of the NZ subspecies in captivity, and a small number of White-flippered Penguins too, so whether or not that is a species it is represented.
 
The best European penguin exhibit by far was the one for humboldt penguins in Emmen, sadly it is now demolished / renovated for hippo.

I have seen jackass (black-footed) penguins on several occasions in Namibia and South Africa, the most memorial being the ones in Simons town, on the Cape peninsula. In that village there are signs everywhere that warn for penguins, especially under your car when it is parked and at the camp site we stayed there were penguins breeding in the bushes (and making an awful lot of noise....
 
lintworm said:
I have seen jackass (black-footed) penguins on several occasions in Namibia and South Africa, the most memorial being the ones in Simons town, on the Cape peninsula. In that village there are signs everywhere that warn for penguins, especially under your car when it is parked and at the camp site we stayed there were penguins breeding in the bushes (and making an awful lot of noise....
Click to expand...

I saw that penguin colony in South Africa too. It was great seeing wild penguins and gave me the desire to see more. Hopefully there will be more wild penguin sightings in Australia and New Zealand someday...
 
zooboy28 said:
Not sure what you consider to be sustainable numbers, but there are over 40 Little Blue Penguins of the NZ subspecies in captivity, and a small number of White-flippered Penguins too, so whether or not that is a species it is represented.
Click to expand...

I would consider a self sustaining population one with a good founder base (at least 25 founder animals, preferably more) that has regular breeding. I suppose I was being a bit sweeping in my statement of the Australian subspecies being the only one represented, it makes sense the birds in NZ would be of the NZ subspecies.

And I shall also go back and edit my initial post. I know New Zealand will get white wings and yellow eyes in rehab frequently, but I was not aware of any permanent captive populations!
 
Hyak_II said:
I would consider a self sustaining population one with a good founder base (at least 25 founder animals, preferably more) that has regular breeding. I suppose I was being a bit sweeping in my statement of the Australian subspecies being the only one represented, it makes sense the birds in NZ would be of the NZ subspecies.

And I shall also go back and edit my initial post. I know New Zealand will get white wings and yellow eyes in rehab frequently, but I was not aware of any permanent captive populations!
Click to expand...

The International Antarctic Centre (International Antarctic Centre Gallery) has a group of White-flippered Penguins, permanently on display. I'm not aware of any Yellow-eyed Penguins permanently in captivity.
 
It is a long time since I have seen it, but I recall when I was much younger being in awe at Planet Penguin at Loro Parque.
 
For an innovative and interesting penguin exhibit, visit the renovated Eismeer complex at Tierpark Hagenbeck in Hamburg.
 
I haven't seen the Emmen penguin enclosure but I'm surprised no one has mentioned the penguin enclosure in Afrykarium in Wroclaw Zoo.
It is by miles the best penguin enclosure that I have seen and I believe it also has the largest pool in the world which - according to the zoo website - is c. 2,460,000 litres (approx. 650,000 gallons), the zoo website also says it's the deepest in Europe.
Here is a view from above:

View from the underwater viewing:


As far as wild penguins go, I have seen two species. African penguins on Boulder Beach South Africa, and Little Blue Penguins on Penguin Island, off Perth, Western Australia.
 
Javan Rhino said:
It is a long time since I have seen it, but I recall when I was much younger being in awe at Planet Penguin at Loro Parque.
Click to expand...

Even today, that remains one of the best indoor penguin exhibits in the world.
When looking at these exhibits, it is perhaps better to clearly separate the all-indoor for the Antarctic species (obviously very vulnerable to heat and typically don't do that well in outside exhibits) and outside exhibits for temperate/subtropical species that do fine in most European and North American climates.
 
The Maryland Zoo opened Penguin Coast in 2014 and is marketed as the largest outdoor penguin exhibit in the country at 185,000 gallons and 360 degree viewing space around a central holding building. I don't know of very many 360 degree exhibits for penguins.
 
NAIB Volunteer said:
The Maryland Zoo opened Penguin Coast in 2014 and is marketed as the largest outdoor penguin exhibit in the country at 185,000 gallons and 360 degree viewing space around a central holding building. I don't know of very many 360 degree exhibits for penguins.
Click to expand...

New African Penguin Exhibit | The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore

I definitely say it's one of the more innovative penguin exhibits.

Along with the 185,000 gallons of fresh water, there are two other features that help structure the habitat and entertain visitors. One feature is the dump tank that periodically releases a waterfall, creating waves for the penguins to bob in and helping to keep the water clean. Visitors can watch the waterfall up close through the tidal pool viewing window, located in the Education Center. Another feature is the blowhole, which occasionally shoots water in the air to cool off those who don’t mind getting wet.
Click to expand...
 
snowleopard said:
This is an interesting thread as I've often declared that penguins are zoo "superstars" as they are immensely popular and at times extremely active attractions. I've personally been mesmerized by the chilly environments at Calgary Zoo and Saint Louis Zoo, where it seems possible to easily reach over and actually touch a penguin as guests are in close proximity to the birds. Detroit Zoo opens its Penguinarium in the next few months, and the 33,000 sq. ft. building is larger than most aquariums and the zoo has sent out press releases with statements like this:

"When the facility opens in early 2016, it will be the largest penguin facility in the world, home to more than 80 penguins of four species – gentoo, macaroni, rockhopper and king." - from Oct. 2nd, 2015 press release

In the same press release there is an emphasis on the visitor experience:

"Visitors will descend a series of ramps as they are surrounded by 4-D effects, including arctic blasts, waves, snow and iceberg “calving” – a phenomenon where icebergs split, sending massive cascades of ice crashing into the sea."
Click to expand...

That will be nice to see. Their exhibit is a weak spot in the zoo.
 
I find that many penguin exhibits, in general, prefer a rockier landscape, so it would be pretty cool to see more beach-like and grassy penguin exhibits. Being from Barcelona, both the zoo and the aquarium have a rocky scape for their humboldt penguin exhibits. Can't those guys live in sandier conditions?
 
Humboldt penguin is mainly a species of rocks, but the typical nest is dug in the earth-guano that covers part of the rocky islands of most colonies. They are seen with some regularity on sandy beaches. However, the closely related Magellanic is much more common on sandy beaches (as is the African) and typically breeds in holes in earth/sand/gravel.
In fact, if I absolutely had to point out one little thing with Emmen's superb exhibit, it was that it looked 50% Magellanic and 50% Humboldt if compared to their typical wild habitats (instead of 100% Humboldt, the species at Emmen). However, that's nitpicking and definitely my favorite Spheniscus exhibit.
 
Here's an animation of the Detroit Zoo's new penguin house. It should be open fairly soon and the zoo is of course expecting a lot of people. They will be handing out time-stamped admission tickets (no cost beyond zoo entrance fee). I'll report to the group when I've had a chance to see it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmNWP3RTpPo
 
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