It’s going to be an exciting bird-filled spring at the Louisville Zoo with the arrival of a much anticipated new species never before seen at the Zoo — “Little” penguins — and the opening of the “Wings of the World” Bird Show featuring free flight presentation.
Penguins
Penguins
Nine little blue penguins have made their way to Louisville, Kentucky from the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia and are settling into their new home at Penguin Cove, Little Penguin Conservation Center.
The penguins were temporarily housed at the Bronx Zoo while the Zoo completed their exhibit.
Little penguins are considered the world’s smallest penguin species standing between 12 – 17 inches and weighing on average just over three pounds. They live in colonies along the southern coast of Australia, around the nearby island of Tasmania, and the entire coastline of New Zealand. This bird hunts during the day and can dive up to 200 feet in pursuit of fish and invertebrate animals to feed upon. These warm climate penguins will complement the Zoo’s rockhopper penguins that reside in a chilled exhibit in the Islands Pavilion.
Birdlife International estimates the wild population of little penguins at just fewer than one million. Although numerous, the species is on the decline as a result of oil pollution, predation by non-native wildlife and drowning in fishnets.
The Zoo is participating in an Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan (SSP) project to conserve the little penguin in partnership with the Taronga Zoo, Sydney, the Zoo and Aquarium association of Australia, New Zealand, and Pacific region, and the Government of Australia.
Penguin Cove will give guests the opportunity to observe the penguins’ social and natural behaviors in an outdoor exhibit area. Guests will also be able to visit one-on-one with the animals in a private interactive area.
Wings of the World
If free flight birds make you go wow, you will want to check out the “Wings of the World” Bird show that opens Saturday, May 21. Guests will see beautiful birds such as an Andean condor, double wattled cassowary, singing parrot, African crowned crane, bateleur eagle and others fly, sing and delight in the new “Wings of the World” Bird Show presented by Ford Motor Company.
Written and created by Joe Krathwohl, this free flight presentation weaves conservation messages with spectacular bird behaviors and personal stories about the animals. It is produced by Birds ‘n Beasts, Inc.
The 30-minute “Wings of the World Bird” show will held three times daily and four times on Saturdays at the MetaZoo stage in the center of campus; specific times will be announced at a later date. Specific bird species are subject to change without notice. The show is free with Zoo admission.
Show creator Krathwohl, aka The Birdman®, frequently appears on television shows and has been seen on Leno, Letterman, Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, and appeared with Jack Hanna and Mutual of Omaha's Peter Gros. Krathwohl also supplies trained birds and animals for Steve Wynn’s Le Reve, major resorts including Caesars Palace, and ongoing Hollywood projects by producers including Steven Spielberg and Ridley Scott. He is most known for his 15 years of bird shows at the famous Tropicana Resort.
For more information on both Penguin Cove and “Wings of the World” birdshow visit: https://louisvillezoo.org/
