New England Aquarium announces hatching of 4 African penguin chicks
BOSTON - The New England Aquarium announced four new African penguin chicks hatched recently.
The first chick, a male, hatched on March 21, followed by a female on March 27. Both chicks share the same parents, Malgas II and Demersus III. A male chick then hatched on April 8, followed by a female on April 18. Both of those chicks also have the same parents, Namibia IV and Jahleel III.
Namibia IV is a first-time mother. Malgas II is also mother to Bray the penguin, who hatched at the aquarium last year and made her debut in June.
All of the chicks will soon be named before they join the rest of the aquarium's African penguin colony. The aquarium said this is the first time since 2019 that they have multiple African penguin chicks in the same breeding season.
The oldest of the chicks is already the size of an adult because young penguins grow quickly. He'll likely go on exhibit for the public in early June.
African penguins, who are found along the coasts of South Africa and Namibia, are an endangered species. The aquarium said they're threatened by the depletion of food due to overfishing, climate change and pollution.
