Adorable: King penguin chick ‘Louie’ now on display at Kansas City Zoo
King Louie has arrived.
The first king penguin hatched at the Kansas City Zoo joined the rest of the flock Tuesday in Helzberg Penguin Plaza, where he will remain on public display.
Initially, Louie will be in a “penguin playpen” on the other side of the glass, offering close-up views for visitors. For now, he still has his gray chick fur. Eventually, he will grow as tall as a yardstick. Kings are the second largest penguins, after emperors.
The bird hatched Nov. 8 from a surplus egg provided by the Saint Louis Zoo. It was hand-raised by zoo staff.
The gender was determined by a blood test a few weeks later, and the king penguin was aptly named Louie through a vote on social media.
The debut of the penguin comes just days after the zoo announced the birth of a female chimpanzee, who was named Gracie.
Matt Campbell: 816-234-4902, @MattCampbellKC
This story was originally published January 16, 2018 at 2:12 PM with the headline "Adorable: King penguin chick ‘Louie’ now on display at Kansas City Zoo."