The Penguin Post has learned that the two Humboldt penguin chicks born at the Akron Zoo in Ohio over the winter have finally been named after a hotly contested neming contest sponsored by the zoo. Time to welcome Pez (male) and Niña (female). More than 1,500 people voted on the pair’s names in a contest recently. Pez received 523 votes and Niña received 388. Pez is Spanish for “fish,” which is the penguins’ main diet and Niña is Spanish for “little girl.”
One person who entered the right combination was drawn at random and won a behind-the-scenes tour of the penguin exhibit for up to four people. Pez hatched on Jan. 8, and Niña arrived Jan. 11 — the earliest that chicks have ever hatched at the zoo. It is also the first time in the zoo’s history that two chicks have been reared by the same parents at one time. Pez and Niña are now on exhibit.
Pez is on the left looking right and Nina is on the right looking left.
