Saturday, February 26, 2000
Aquarium: No penguin progeny yet
BY TERRY FLYNN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
NEWPORT — Two of the penguin eggs laid recently at the Oceanic Adventures Newport Aquarium's Kingdom of Penguins exhibit definitely aren't fertile, while a third egg was listed as questionable following light tests conducted Friday. Senior aquatic biologist Crystal Phillips and aquarium consulting veterinarian Tim Mullican said following the tests they were not surprised that the king penguin eggs showed no signs of life.
“This is the first time these penguins have bred...” said Ms. Phillips, the aquarium's penguin expert. “Penguins seldom have fertile eggs on the first try.”
The aquarium opened in mid-May and the penguins were brought here from Japan a few weeks prior to opening. Ms. Phillips said the fact that eggs were laid indicates the penguins have acclimated well.
The first two eggs removed from the incubator, where they have been kept at a constant temperature of 96.5 degrees, were laid on Jan. 4 and Jan. 6. Both had been checked previously; this was the final examination that determined they were not viable.
Ms. Phillips and Mr. Mullican examined the eggs with a method known as candling, which dates to the 19th century when farmers checked eggs by holding them up to a candle and allowing the light to shine through the shell.
At the aquarium, a slide projector light was used instead of a candle. Ms. Phillips and Mr. Mullican were looking for veins inside the shells that would indicate the penguin embryos were developing.
The test on the third egg, which was laid Feb. 1, was not conclusive. “We'll try again in about 10 days and then we'll have a better idea of whether it's fertile,” Mr. Mullican said.
King penguins breed and lay a single egg at a time. Gestation is about 60 days.
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