(MY) penguin's birth

[Guest guest]

A possible world first birth right here in KL - Sunday Times

By Theresa Manavalan news

 

KUALA LUMPUR, June 8. - A penguin hatched at the Duta Vista

Resort in Kuala Lumpur may be a world first - in an urban holiday

resort in the tropics.

 

The baby, born on March 22, is now about 30cm tall.

 

Duta Vista's management has kept it a secret because they wanted

the hatchling to get through its first two months of life undisturbed.

 

Most patrons did not even notice the baby.

 

Duta Vista's maintenance manager Yoong Kian Kee said the egg

was laid in January. " Although the females have laid eggs before,

none survived, " said Yoong. " This is our first. " At Duta Vista, they

have a pool to themselves and an air-conditioned enclosure. Their

living area is kept sterile and is fumigated every fortnight.

 

They are Jackass penguins (Spheniscus demerus), native to 25

islands off Namibia and South Africa, and can tolerate temperatures

slightly higher than the South Pole. This particular group were bred in

captivity.

 

In nature, Jackass penguins are highly social colony-nesters with two

laying seasons a year. They are panicky by nature and sensitive to

the smallest changes in their environment.

 

Eight penguins were brought to the Duta Vista resort in 1993, shortly

after the resort opened for business. Three have died.

 

The management made a commitment to keeping penguins by hiring

two full-time keepers and spending on healthcare, air-conditioning

and frequent pool water changes. The six birds consume two kgs of

sardines a day.

 

Tanco Resorts is a sponsor of the Hamburg penguin colony at Zoo

Negara, which provides veterinary advice to the birds at the resort.

 

In 1998, another group of Jackass penguins were brought to Tanco

Resorts' other property, the Duta Palm Anglers Club in Rawang. Of

those six, only one has survived. And he is a grouchy personality

with a tendency to snap at people.

 

In nearly a decade, the penguins have acclimatised well, acquiring

only one Malaysian habit: They like to be hand-fed.