Fluffy penguin chicks leave the nest for the first time

A trio of adorable, fluffy Humboldt penguins have made their first brave ventures out of their nests in Penguin World. 

All four parents have successfully raised chicks before, with penguins Leaf and Salsa this time hatching two chicks and Cheese and Arrow giving birth to just the one this time round.

The three are yet-to-be-sexed and are unnamed at the moment but keepers will be putting their thinking caps on as they try to come up with names that link to the parent’s own unusual names.

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE CHICKS:

All three youngsters currently have the distinctive brown to grey colouration that sets them apart from the black and white colouring of the adults, but they will lose this during their first moult at around one years old.

Under the watchful eyes of their protective parents, who have been warding the other penguins away from their nests, the two month old chicks have been spotted tentatively leaving their nests for the first time.

However, all three will remain dependent on their parents for food until they are around six months old, with both parents playing an important role in caring for the young.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Humboldt Penguins are unique in the way that they build their nest by digging burrows into large deposits of sea bird and seal excrement, known as guano. The penguins at the park have the option to use artificial nest boxes but they still prefer to dig their own nests into the hillside, which is exactly what this year’s parents have done.
• Each pair has a nest that they will return to each year and just as they would in the wild, they mark them with their own guano so that they can easily recognise it. 
• On land, a group of penguins is called a waddle, a colony, a rookery or a penguinery but when they’re in the water, a group of penguins is called a raft.