New themed enclosure in Gloucestershire to house intake of African penguins

A stunning new penguin enclosure has been unveiled at a wildlife park in the Cotswolds. Birdland Park & Gardens will celebrate the opening of the enclosure and the intake of several new residents as part of their Penguin Week during the May half-term (from 28th May until 5th June.)

Alistair Keen, head keeper at the nine-acre site in Bourton-on-the-Water, said: "Our penguins are often the star attraction to Birdland, so we're delighted to have increased their number.

"They're all settling really well into our new themed enclosure, which has proved very popular with visitors in the short time it has been open."

Alistair and his team have already welcomed a group of African penguins to the park from Bristol Zoo, with more due to arrive later in the year. African penguins are also called the Jackass Penguins due to their braying call. They are now critically endangered in the wide due to pollution and overfishing.

The enclosure's redevelopment work has seen the area completely transformed with a sleepy fishing village backdrop, by design company Dead Walk and the above and below water viewing areas of Penguin Shore have also been updated with new glass.

Birdland already has some celebrity penguins in its ranks, including Spike, who has his own popular social media presence after appearing in an advert for biscuits and on TV with Sir David Attenborough. Seth, who was born in 1985, is the oldest male king penguin in Europe, Asia and Australia. He starred in the blockbuster film Batman Returns, alongside the likes of Hollywood royalty such as Danny De Vito, Michael Keaton and Michelle Pfeiffer.

Penguin Week will be celebrated during the May half term, which starts on Saturday. To book, visit https://www.birdland.co.uk