Loveland Living Planet Aquarium welcomes 4 new macaroni penguins: What to know

DRAPER, Utah (ABC4) — The Loveland Living Planet Aquarium is welcoming some new residents into its gentoo penguin habitat: Four macaroni penguins.

The penguins — two males and two females — will live with 22 gentoo penguins in the aquarium’s Penguin Research Station. Macaroni penguins are recognizable for their yellow crest feathers.

“Their name originates from an 18th-century term used to describe an extravagant style—a nod to the original meaning behind their name, not a reference to pasta as some might assume,” the aquarium said in a press release.

In the wild, macaroni penguins forage in open waters for krill, small fish, and squid, and can dive to depths of more than 100 meters. They have also evolved waterproof plumage and specialized salt glands to excrete extra salt, according to the aquarium.

The species is classified as “vulnerable” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List, which means the penguins are in one of the “threatened categories.”

“Integrating macaroni penguin into our Penguin Research Station offers our guests an exceptional opportunity to experience these remarkable birds up close and explore the intricacies of penguin ecology from feeding strategies to habitat adaptations,” said Dr. Ari Fustukjian, Vice President of Zoological Operations.

The aquarium is also inviting members of the public to help name the penguins. You can use an online form to submit up to four names (two boy names and two girl names), and name submissions can be sent in until Wednesday, April 9.

The Loveland Living Planet Aquarium first opened in Draper, Utah, in March 2014, and has welcomed almost 10 million guests since then.