P-P-P-PICASSO! Penguins step up to show painting skills in lockdown
IT’S a case of Happy Feet for Ireland’s only colony of gentoo penguins who have p-p-p-picked up painting during lockdown.
For one colony of Co Kerry penguins, it has been a case showing off their fancy footwork during the pandemic to help keep them stimulated.
The gentoo penguins at Dingle Oceanworld are becoming budding artists during lockdown.
It’s a case of Happy Feet brought to life as the polar birds dip their feet in animal-friendly paint and waddle around to make distinctive works of art.
Kevin Flannery, the director of the popular Kerry aquarium, said staff dreamed up the art classes to keep the highly sociable birds entertained in the € 1million polar enclosure which is a homage to Kerry explorer Tom Crean.
He added: “They really do miss looking out at people. They are very interactive and would have been entertained by people coming into the aquarium.
“They would walk around putting their prints in the snow and the staff came up with the idea of giving them paint – it’s specialised paint which is safe for animals.
“They give them different paints and they walk over them and do different things with them. It is very interesting for them.
“We keep them entertained with
different toys but this has been something very different.”
The dozen polar birds have taken to their art like ducks to water over the past few months.
Kevin said: “The younger ones, Sneachta and Uisce, are especially interested. It is like having a junior infants’ class painting.
“We have buckets of paint and paper on the ground and they walk across it. “They walk in different ways and they all have different footprints and different claw sizes.” Kevin said the colony often surprise visitors with how vocal they are with each other.
He added: “They’re extremely loud,
people don’t realise it. It’s like squabbling with the neighbours.” Kevin said the penguins get particularly raucous during the nesting season when a mating pair mind the eggs. He joked: “It’s mostly calling out to their partner, where has he gone, has he gone for a pint or a swim? “It happens especially during the nesting if one leaves that the other one will start calling.” The marine biologist said he is hopeful the colony may produce some young chicks this year. Kevin added: “We are hopeful coming up to April and May they will breed once they are paired off.”
The staff came up with the idea of giving them paint - it’s paint which is safe for animals KEVIN FLANNERY ON WADDLING SKILLS OF THE PENGUINS