We Heart Penguins
Mind the eggs
Making a den
in a nesting colony.
Raising chicks takes teamwork in a penguin family, both mom and dad have primary roles. Magellanic penguins breed in large nesting colonies, with each pair living in a burrow. In our colony, each parent pair has a den.
Egg-cellent egg-sittting
Mom & Dad take turns.
When eggs are laid, both parents take turns sitting on the eggs in 2-week shifts. After chicks hatch, parents take turns feeding fish to their little ones.
Fun Facts about penguins.
- Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium welcomed a chick named Regina George in May 2023.
- Although she’s grown her first coat of waterproof feathers, Regina does not have his full tuxedo coloring yet.
- Males attract mates by “braying” like donkeys; when a female responds he walks around her in a circle patting her with his flippers.
- Mated pairs preen each other and hit bill tips together to bond.