After much anticipation and speculation about which would come first, the egg or the aardvark, the Cincinnati Zoo says the first baby of 2016 is a penguin.
The little penguin, also known as a fairy or blue penguin, was born Friday at 6 a.m. The chick won't join the rest of the Zoo's penguin colony until the spring. Little penguins prefer milder temperatures.
“The Zoo celebrates Penguin Days during January and February, so it’s fitting that a penguin chick would be the first little one to arrive in 2016,” says Cincinnati Zoo Director Thane Maynard.
Ali the aardvark has been on birth watch since early December and is expected to deliver any day now.
“Ultrasounds have shown that the baby is in position and Ali is as big as a house. Her chin has a chin. I really thought she would have the first baby of 2016,” says nursery keeper Dawn Strasser.
Let The Name Game Begin
The Zoo is taking name suggestions on social media.