NEW YORK — Two dozen members of the world’s smallest penguin species have taken up residence at the Bronx Zoo.
The little penguins are also called blue penguins or fairy penguins. When fully grown, they are only about 13 inches tall and weigh 2 to 3 pounds.
All of the birds in the colony at the Bronx Zoo were hatched at the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, and brought to the Bronx as part of a breeding program. In the wild, they are found in Australia and New Zealand.
They are the Bronx Zoo’s first-ever little penguins. Only three facilities in the U.S. currently have them.
Jim Breheny of the Wildlife Conservation Society says the little penguins are acclimating well to their new home and are “quite a sight to see.”
