Oldest penguin at Maryland Zoo dies, but Mr. Greedy’s legacy lives on in 5 generations
The oldest African penguin at the Maryland Zoo was humanely euthanized after his health declined at the ripe old age of 33 years.
That’s nearly twice the 18-year-old average life expectancy of his species, which is endangered, the zoo said in a news release.
The legacy of the beloved African penguin #821, who was known as Mr. Greedy, will live on across five generations of his 230 descendants.
“This one bird was incredibly important to the continued existence of African penguins throughout the world,” said Jen Kottyan, the zoo’s bird curator who also leads the African Penguin Species Survival Plan program. “It’s tough to lose an animal who has been such a welcome presence at our Zoo for three decades, but all of us are proud that he is survived by five generations of offspring.”
Now his lifelong mate, Mrs. Greedy, takes his place as the zoo’s oldest penguin, the zoo said. Both of the birds hatched in 1991 and arrived at the zoo in 1992.
“They had been paired up from the time they hit reproductive age in 1994,” Kottyan said.
The pair’s oldest offspring is 28 years old, the zoo said. That penguin lives in another facility, but several of the love birds’ other offspring still live at the Maryland Zoo.
One of them is Olive, one of the pair’s fifth-generation descendants, the zoo said. Olive “is not part of the breeding colony but lives in the Animal Embassy, where she helps educate visitors about these amazing animals and the threats they face in the wild,” the zoo said.
“Beautiful family & legacy left behind!” someone said of Mr. Greedy on the zoo’s Sept. 5 Facebook post announcing the penguin’s death.
Penguin Coast zookeepers are monitoring Mrs. Greedy after her mate’s death, the zoo said.
“Her behavior will determine what happens next,” the zoo said. “If she shows interest, the Zoo will pair her with a single male in the colony as a companion.”
The zoo houses the largest colony of African penguins in North America and has bred more than 1,000 chicks, playing an important role in preserving the species.
“Despite being a protected species, the number of wild African penguins has declined dramatically,” the zoo said. “There is a real chance the birds will become extinct within ten years.”
Wild African penguins must “compete with commercial fishermen for access to their main food source,” the zoo said.
The birds are also “vulnerable to ocean pollution, including spills from oil tankers and human disturbances on penguin nesting grounds,” the zoo said.
