The colony of blue penguins that live at the aquarium is one of the first exhibits visitors see when they step inside the building. The penguins came to the exhibit in April, 1998. They're one of three penguin species at the aquarium, along with the rockhoppers and Africans. Of the 17 species of penguins, the blues are the smallest, Laughlin says. They are native to Australia and New Zealand.
Blues are the smallest of all penguin species.
Adult birds weigh about 2 pounds. In the wild, blues forage between 11 and 18 hours per day. They eat an average of 17 percent of their body weight each day. Blues are the only penguins to have bluish-grey feathers. They also are the only penguins without head ornamentation.