ZOO BUILDS PENGUIN ENCLOSURE, STOCKS IT WITH PLASTIC PENGUINS

The Telford Exotic Zoo in Shropshire, England – a small, community zoo – built a new $60,000 enclosure for a batch of Humboldt penguins. But now, after months of preparation, there are no penguins available to stock it because of a national outbreak of avian malaria. The outbreak took a lot of zoos by surprise and wiped out a lot of penguins. So, until some birds become available the zoo has placed six plastic penguins in the habitat so children can still see and learn about them until the real penguins arrive. Zoo owner Scott Adams says, “If anyone has any captive bred penguins we’d be happy to look at them.”
* And so would all the kiddos who paid money to see the plastic replicas.
* How about they put up a flatscreen in the enclosure and run “Happy Feet” over and over?
* Set up 12 plastic penguins in a triangle and let kids roll bowling balls at them?
* Avian malaria. I’m sure on the trip from the South Pole those penguins were thinking, “Finally no more freezing – I’m set for life!”
* And the malaria mosquitoes were thinking, “Wow, these little people in tuxedos are yummy!”