Asia Pacific
The baby king penguin is the first of its kind to be born at the bird park in close to a decade.
Weighing just 200g at birth, Maru was raised by keepers away from the penguin colony on a blended fish diet. (Photo: AFP / David Tan / Wildlife Reserves Singapore)
SINGAPORE: A baby king penguin waddled into view in Singapore’s bird park on Wednesday (Dec 13), the first of its kind to be born there in close to a decade.
Maru, which means “round” in Japanese, came from parents Zoro and Sora, part of the king penguin colony in the Jurong Bird Park’s penguin exhibit, said Wildlife Reserves Singapore in a press release on Wednesday.
To maximise survival chances, keepers retrieved the egg and incubated it until it hatched on Oct 10.
Weighing just 200g at birth, the hatchling was raised by keepers away from the colony on a blended fish diet and has now progressed to eating herring fillets and capelin. At 6kg, it is now 30 times its original weight.
Maru the penguin hatched in early October after a two-month incubation period at the Jurong Bird Park in Singapore. (Photo: AFP / Wildlife Reserves Singapore)
At two months old, keepers decided it was time to introduce it to the adult group, which curiously surrounded the baby’s pen as it flapped its flippers and called out to the group.
The youngster will lose its brown down in about nine months for its adult plumage.
Maru at one month, developing a curious personality and the beginnings of a thick brown coat. (Photo: Wildlife Reserves Singapore)
With a collection of nearly 5,000 birds, the Jurong Bird Park is Asia’s largest avian park. There are 17 King Penguins at the park’s Penguin Coast exhibit, along with the African, Humboldt, Rockhopper and Macaroni Penguin species.
In the wild, rising temperatures as a result of climate change has forced king penguins to travel further for food, which researchers say could cut their breeding season and hamper repopulation.
King Penguins are the second largest in size and can weigh up to 15kg – after the Emperor Penguin – growing up to almost one metre in height.
