New wetsuit to protect bald penguin
14 Jun 10
A bald 10-year-old penguin has been given a new wetsuit to prevent its exposed skin from getting sunburnt.
Penguins lose and replace their feathers every year, which usually takes between four to six weeks to complete.
However, Ralph - a Humboldt penguin at Marwell Wildlife in Hampshire - loses all his feathers in the space of a few days and new ones take time to grow, exposing his skin to the sun.
The made-to-measure wetsuit, created from neoprene - a rubber used to make wetsuits for humans - is to protect Ralph's skin until new feathers have grown through, which his keepers think will take about a month.
The outfit has been redesigned with sticky fabric strips by keepers at the zoo near Winchester. The new design is expected to help the keepers adjust the outfit to make it more comfortable as the new feathers grow.
Dave White, head keeper for the penguins, said: "The stretchy material lets Ralph move around normally.
"The added benefit of the Velcro means that as his new feathers grow through we will be able to adjust its size, so it's always comfy for him.
"At the moment he is sitting on two eggs with his partner Coral and she seems happy enough with his new look for this year."
Ralph was given a wetsuit for the first time last year to protect its exposed skin.
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