Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium’s youngest Magellanic penguin has officially passed his swim lessons and joined the rest of the colony at Penguin Point. Guests can now spot him splashing around with the adult penguins.
Pedro, hatched this spring and fostered by first-time penguin parents Dwight and Myrtle, recently molted his soft, downy feathers. This natural change signaled that he was ready to dive into the next stage of penguin life: swimming.
“In the wild, penguin chicks don’t enter the water until they’ve grown their waterproof feathers,” explained Jen DeGroot, Curator of Marine Mammals. “At the zoo, we take extra precautions to ensure they’re truly ready for the big pool, giving them swim lessons behind the scenes first.”
Over several sessions with attentive keepers, Pedro paddled in a special training pool, gradually gaining confidence and learning how to climb in and out safely.
“He took a quick interest in the water,” said DeGroot. “He’s a natural.”
Once Pedro showed he could swim and navigate independently, keepers knew he was ready. On a sunny morning, the team took a celebratory walk to Penguin Point, with Pedro waddling happily beside them. He was gently placed onto the rocks, where the rest of the colony greeted him with enthusiastic squawks and curious beak nudges. Before long, Pedro was gliding through the water with ease.
Pedro’s big pool debut follows weeks of preparation, including exploratory adventures around the zoo. The zoo shared his behind-the-scenes moments on social media, with Pedro visiting the seal and sea lion habitats, flapping his little flippers, and even finding his voice during enrichment time. These experiences helped him grow comfortably with new environments, a key step in his development.
Pedro’s journey began with a carefully planned egg transfer as part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan® (SSP). His biological parents, Orange and Yellow, laid two eggs this year. To ensure the best chance for both, one was placed with foster parents Dwight and Myrtle, who successfully raised Pedro.
Each chick born at Point Defiance Zoo plays an important role in conserving the threatened Magellanic penguin species, which faces increasing threats in the wild from oil spills, plastic pollution, and overfishing.
“We’re thrilled Pedro has reached this milestone,” said DeGroot. “Watching him rejoin the colony and thrive is a huge success; for him and his species’ future.”
Spot Pedro: Zoo guests can spot Pedro daily at Penguin Point. Pedro is the only chick in the colony and easy to identify. He’s missing the adults’ signature white cheek stripes but still looks a bit fuzzier.