Maryland Zoo’s African penguin colony has welcomed a new resident named Gerry, who hails from Monterey Bay Aquarium. Gerry was hatched on Nov. 30, 2022, and has traveled across the country to breed with one of several genetically matched males in the Maryland Zoo colony.
The African penguin (Spheniscus demersus) colony at Maryland Zoo is the largest African penguin population in North America, and the second largest managed population in the world. Gerry underwent a standard 30-day quarantine and has been introduced to her new colony. The zoo reports she is settling in nicely.
The national African Penguin Species Survival Plan© (SSP) recommended Gerry be transferred to the colony at Maryland Zoo based on genetic matches. These breeding recommendations are critical to helping rebuild the global population of the African penguin, which was recently downgraded to “critically endangered” by The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Maryland Bird Curator Jen Kottyan is the national Program Leader for the African Penguin SSP, which works with institutions accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Kottyan said Gerry will help contribute to the longevity of the African penguin species.
“The work of the African Penguin Species Survival Plan is incredibly important to the future survival of these birds,” Kottyan said. “We’re preparing to introduced Gerry to potential mates and will be looking for appropriate behaviors, like bonding and establishing a nest that are precursors to mating.”
The colony’s new addition sounds like she’s got the personality for a new environment and is up to the task of choosing a mate from several being presented to her, based on the Aimee Greenbaum’s description of her. Greenbaum is Curator of Aviculture at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
“Gerry is curious and playful.” Greenbaum said. “She was always one of the first penguins to go investigate some new enrichment item, she’d often be seen interacting with our guests through the windows and she enjoyed following the adult penguins around to see what they were up to.”
Gerry was named after Gerry Low-Sabado, an educator and community preservationist in Monterey Bay who passed away in 2021. Her Chinese ancestors founded a fishing village near where the Aquarium is, and originated a fishing method the fishing industry continues to use today: when fishing for squid at night, they hung lanterns from their boats to attract squid to the surface. In 1906, her ancestors were driven from their village by a suspected arson and prevented from resettling nearby because of the racist laws that existed at the time.
“Gerry Low-Sabado was passionate about her family’s story – a story of innovation, displacement, and persistence,” said Kera Abraham Panni, senior community engagement manager at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. “Like the Chinese Americans of the Monterey Peninsula, African penguins are surviving despite formidable odds. Gerry the penguin is a testament to that resilience.”
The downgrade of African penguins’ status is partly due to overfishing off the coast of their native habitat in South Africa and Namibia. To help the them maintain resilience and set them on the path towards thriving, the public can help by using the Aquarium’s Seafood Watch, to make sure any seafood they purchase is sustainable.
