Penguin dies at Woodland Park Zoo

Posted by Geeky Swedes on August 13th, 2009

One of the Humboldt Penguins has died at the Woodland Park Zoo.

The zoo’s press release says that the penguin died after ingesting a sealant material used in the exhibit’s pool. According to the release, zoo staff removed the source of the material after an exhaustive search. Staff continues to look for loose pieces of the sealant. The 18-year-old male penguin named Chiquito came to Woodland Park from the Brookfield Zoo as part of the new Humboldt Penguin exhibit. Two other penguins are under veterinary care for similar, but less severe, symptoms. “While the prognosis remains guarded at this time, a steady to normal recovery is expected over days to weeks,” Dr. Darin Collins, the zoo’s director of Animal Health said. (Photo credit: Ryan Hawk)

Tags: Ballard Share

22 reader comments so far ↓

1 chopper_74 // Aug 13, 2009 at 11:16 pm

Well, that's just plain dumb. Toxic material in a habitat?
I hope the others recover, and that some heads role.
2 JDballard // Aug 13, 2009 at 11:26 pm

What if the sealant wasn't toxic? maybe it was just loose and the penguin swallowed it?

Either way, it was an….drum roll………accident. And hopefully they can learn from it and fix it.

Maybe no heads have to “role”.
3 gooner // Aug 13, 2009 at 11:28 pm

is it up for auction?

too soon?
4 NoraBell // Aug 13, 2009 at 11:31 pm

Poor guy.
I'm no fan of the zoo, but yeah, I'm going to file this as a tragic accident. Hopefully it's a lesson learned and they keep a closer eye on what's floating about.
5 ralphie // Aug 13, 2009 at 11:43 pm

Chiquito was always my favorite.

He would swim over to the glass whenever I showed him my 'Taco Del Mar' bag, then do an acrobatic flip for a chip or two.

Via Con Dios Chico!
6 NW // Aug 13, 2009 at 11:43 pm

Did Batman kill him?
7 chopper_74 // Aug 13, 2009 at 11:53 pm

Toxic, as in substance that causes harm or death.
And I know, too well, that heads don't need to 'roll' (thanks for the correction), and probably won't.
It's still a complete waste of life. Even in a zoo…
8 Silver // Aug 14, 2009 at 1:23 am

Wrong penguin, goonerpants!

I had the same disgusting thought though. ;-)
9 Silver // Aug 14, 2009 at 1:24 am

You guys are so bad!
10 Ballardmom // Aug 14, 2009 at 3:40 am

That's really sad.
18 years old??? How long do penguins usually live? I didn't realize they lived that long. Do they normally live as long as parrots? I've always wondered too how they are happy living in our seems-so-warm-for-them climate.
I wonder who ok'ed the use of the sealant on the new exhibit? Or if the contractors just used whatever they had without thinking of the animals. I'd be spitting mad if I were one of the zookeepers.
11 Ballardmom // Aug 14, 2009 at 3:42 am

Um … I don't get it … ???
12 Dogman of Ballard // Aug 14, 2009 at 4:28 am

Sounds like a blockage of some sort.

From:

http://www.seaworld.org/infobooks/penguins/long...

penguins have a life span 0f 15-20 years.
Has Opus been notified . . . this may put him over the edgw.
Can Bill the Cat and Steve Dallas account for their whereabouts for the past week?
13 Dogman of Ballard // Aug 14, 2009 at 4:30 am

Robin did, in the library with a candle holder.
14 NoraBell // Aug 14, 2009 at 4:59 am

Candlestick. Have you never played Clue?
15 Black_Sheep // Aug 14, 2009 at 5:53 am

I *LOVE* Clue.
16 randi // Aug 14, 2009 at 10:18 am

awww…rest in peace little guy :(
17 cvn66 // Aug 14, 2009 at 1:10 pm

Ballardmom – the penguins at the zoo are Humbolt Penguins from Peru. They can live to be 30 in zoos. They are actually warm-weather penguins – Punta San Juan where a good number of them live is essentially a desert – it really does not rain there and is fairly warm, but has very cold water. Unlike Antartic penguins, they don't need extreme cold to survive. Check out the zoo fact sheet on Penguins for more info.
18 Ballardmom // Aug 14, 2009 at 3:40 pm

Thanks for the info. I should probably pay attention during the children's programs I take my daughter to. I had no idea there were warm water penguins. That's neat. It is sad though they can live to 30 years and this penguin was only 18. If they normally lived to 15-16 years old it wouldn't feel so sad.
19 Fauxnothing // Aug 14, 2009 at 6:55 pm

Seems equally sad if an old penguin dies in pain as it does if a middle-aged penguin dies in pain, but that's just me.
20 NoraBell // Aug 14, 2009 at 7:55 pm

It's not just you.
21 Freddie // Aug 14, 2009 at 11:24 pm

Better than being torn to shreds and eaten alive by a shark in the wild I imagine….
22 AmerBestZoos // Aug 15, 2009 at 4:53 am

This is obviously just a pure accident. Accidents happen! The Woodland Park Zoo is still a great zoo, with great devotion to its animals. And this is still a great penguin exhibit.

Allen Nyhuis, Coauthor: America's Best Zoos

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