Endangered African penguin chick makes his debut at Coney’s New York Aquarium

It’s one small step for a penguin chick, one giant step for penguin-kind.

A four-month-old critically endangered African penguin chick has made his debut at the New York Aquarium in Coney Island, joining his parents and a colony of 34 other African penguins in the rocky Sea Cliffs exhibit.

Though he weighed just two ounces when he hatched in early December, the chick’s arrival was a victory for the aquarium and his species.

hatched penguin chick — The baby weighed only two ounces when he hatched in December. Photo courtesy of Terria Clay/Wildlife Conservation Society

Facing habitat loss, overfishing and human disturbances, the population of African penguins, which are native to the coasts of Namibia and South Africa, has dropped 60% in the past decade, according to the IUCN Red List, and there are only around 19,800 adult African penguins left in the wild.

The colony in Coney Island is part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ “Species Survival Plan,” where accredited zoos and aquariums manage and breed endangered species. That way, if the wild populations continue to dwindle, there are healthy and genetically-diverse groups in captivity to help with recovery.

keeper african penguin — The chick’s growth and milestones were carefully tracked. Photo courtesy of Terria Clay/Wildlife Conservation Society

For four months, the penguin’s keepers have been carefully tracking his milestones and growth. African penguins are “pudgy, flightless” birds, according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and very clumsy on land but great swimmers and divers.

The once-miniscule baby has put on roughly 20% of his body weight every day, and weighed a whopping 7.5 pounds by the time he was three months old.

He has shed his fluffy baby down and grown waterproof feathers, learned to swim and hop around on the rocks of his habitat, and socialize with the other penguins. Now, he’s practically adult-sized and ready to greet visitors and hang out with his peers.

penguin chick — The chick now weighs roughly 7 pounds, likely his adult weight.Photo courtesy of Terria Clay/Wildlife Conservation Society

He is the 19th African penguin to hatch at the New York Aquarium, and part of a successful SSP program — in the last 20 years, the population of African penguins in the program has grown by 47%.

They’re in good company in Coney Island. Their neighbors at Sea Cliffs include Pumpkin and Clover, a pair of rescued southern sea otters — a threatened species — who arrived in 2024 to join their fellow sea otter Quint. Back in 2019, the aquarium welcomed five endangered Atlantic sturgeon to the shark exhibit.