Introducing Assisted Living for Senior Penguins!
Captive-bred animals deserve some TLC as they age, and so a US aquarium has created the perfect retreat tailored to the needs of its senior penguins. Innovating to offer aging African penguins a better quality of life in their golden years, the New England Aquarium now offers them a dedicated geriatric space, reports Boston.com.
A Private Island Awaits These Lucky African Penguins
Six of the New England Aquarium’s mature birds, aged from 14 to 34, are already getting accustomed to their roomier, more exclusive, new island haven, while more penguins will gradually join them.
This enclosure is set apart from the main penguin colony. It has been designed to give them a relaxing and comfortable home, simultaneously enabling the aquarium’s animal care team to carefully monitor their age-related health challenges.
When they were with the larger aquarium colony, CBC Radio outlines, the senior swimmers had a hard time fighting for their food and space with the younger birds. “Animals, especially penguins, can be territorial, especially during nesting seasons or breeding seasons,” The aquarium’s Curator of Pinnipeds and Penguins, Kristen McMahon, told the radio program host.
“We think of this island like assisted living, where we’re helping the birds be more comfortable in a calmer environment,” shares Manager of Penguins, Diana Major in the New England Aquarium news release.
For Major, the priority is a tranquil environment backed by strong animal health support. These promote happier, healthier penguins.
Significantly, African penguins are an endangered species. A New England Aquarium news release notes that the New England Aquarium partners with the SAFE African Penguin program of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), to help protect and restore African penguins inhabiting the coasts of South Africa and Namibia where they are threatened by the depletion of food from overfishing, climate change, and pollution. Some of its penguin care team have already travelled to South Africa to share expertise and help rehabilitate wild, rescued African penguins.
How This Aquarium Came to Set a Precedent in Geritric Animal Care
To its credit. As Boston.com points out, over half of the aquarium’s penguins have hit or surpassed their usual life expectancy of 10-15 years, typically seen in the wild.
One of the reasons for this longevity, as the aquarium reveals, is the absence of predators who prey on ailing birds: “In the wild, they would never reach this age… A lot of the time, we see physical issues that we normally wouldn’t see in the wild because, in the wild, if you slow down you get eaten by a shark,” explains Major.
In 2024, this got the staff thinking how they could best care for their senior flightless birds. Very much like aging humans, the older penguins face health ailments that come with age. Boulders, aged 34, has signs of arthritis. Lambert, 32, has cataracts. Isis, meanwhile, has found it hard to socialize as she has gotten older. Among the new residents are 32-year-old Durban and Harlequin, a pair since 2000, who have raised eight chicks together.
Today, the compassion of the care team is built into the new island enclosure and its routine. It features flat areas with mats for birds with mobility difficulties, as blooloop reports, and gradual, sloping ramps for easier access. The penguins’ health is monitored via video, as well as in person to give a “bird’s eye” view to their carers.
A specially adapted diet includes hydrated fish that have been injected with extra water to foster enhanced kidney health. The seniors are also treated to more personal attention and care. This includes daily eye drops and foot treatments to stave off infection. In addition, physical therapy and acupuncture help to increase motion and keep the penguins swimming along.
McMahon summarizes the thinking behind the new island sanctuary: “Our goal is to take a proactive approach to managing geriatric animals in an environment that better meets their physical and behavioral needs.”