In a first, penguin chick born in India

A Humboldt Penguin chick was born on Independence Day at Mumbai’s Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan zoo, the first-ever such birth in India.

“The egg hatched at 08.02pm on August 15. It appeared to be active and the mother was trying to feed it too,” Dr. Sanjay Tripathi, the zoo director said.

The zoo has four female penguins and three male penguins. Six of the penguins have already paired up, and zoo officials are looking for a partner for the female penguin. The newborn will be added to the penguin colony in the zoo.

The seven Humboldt Penguins were brought from South Korea but one, Dory, died.

(With agency inputs)

First Published: Aug 16, 2018 12:35 IST