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Australia aquarium hosts adorable gender-reveal party for penguin chick

By Chris Williams
Published  September 8, 2024 11:56am MST
Pets and Animals
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Massive penguin chick's gender revealed at Melbourne aquarium

The sex of Pesto, a popular penguin at Sea Life Melbourne, was finally unveiled during a gender-reveal party at the aquarium on September 5. (Credit: SEA LIFE Melbourne via Storyful)

The Brief 

    • Sea Life Melbourne hosted a gender-reveal party for Pesto, a king penguin chick, revealing he's a boy.
    • Pesto, at nine months old and weighing 21kg (46 pounds), is the largest chick the aquarium has ever seen.
    • King penguins are non-sexually dimorphic, so Pesto's gender was unknown until the reveal.

MELBOURNE, Australia - An aquarium in Australia had some fun hosting a gender-reveal party for Pesto, a popular penguin.

Sea Life Melbourne posted video that showed senior keeper Michaela Smale shoveling a pile of snow that revealed blue, for a boy.

The baby's parents, Hudson and Tango, also were at the celebration along with the rest of the resident king penguin colony.

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Meanwhile, the humans had a piece of a penguin-themed cake with blue icing inside.

The sex of Pesto, a popular penguin at Sea Life Melbourne, was finally unveiled during a gender-reveal party at the aquarium on September 5.

"Since hatching earlier this year, Pesto has quickly captured hearts globally, not just for his adorable antics, but for his impressive size. At just nine months old, Pesto tips the scales at a whopping 21kg [46 pounds], thanks to his hearty appetite of 25 fish a day. He’s officially the largest chick Sea Life Melbourne has ever seen, making him a huge hit with guests and fans around the world," the aquarium said in a press release.

Sea Life Melbourne said king penguins are non-sexually dimorphic, meaning they do not display externally visible sex traits, so Pesto's gender was a mystery to the public until recently. 

The Source

  • The details in this story were provided by Storyful after obtaining information and imagery from Sea Life Melbourne. This story was reported from Los Angeles. 

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