Calgary Zoo welcomes new penguin chick

The Calgary Zoo says a gentoo penguin chick hatched at the facility last week. The new baby is the very first penguin chick to be born at the Penguin Plunge. (Supplied/Calgary Zoo)

The Calgary Zoo has announced that one of their breeding pairs of gentoo penguins have successfully incubated a chick, which hatched last week.

The egg was laid on May 31 and both parents minded the egg for 37 days until it hatched on July 7 at approximately 1:15 p.m.

This is the first penguin chick ever hatched at the zoo since opening the Penguin Plunge in February 2012.

Giselle and Lachlan paired over last winter and they are now sharing care of the chick.

Caregivers haven’t yet determined the gender of the chick.

Dr. Malu Celli, curator for Penguin Plunge said in a release on Monday, “This is such a wonderful announcement to be able to make in the face of the current challenges the zoo is dealing with from the flood. It shows the resiliency of nature and that life continues in spite of those difficulties.”

The conservation status of gentoo penguins is near threatened in the wild. While some populations have increased, a rapid decline in key populations appears to be driving a global population decline.

Wild gentoos range from the Antarctic to islands off of South America.

The Calgary Zoo’s Penguin Plunge is expected to open again on July 31 after being closed due to flooding.

The facility is expected to full reopen by November.