By Yenny Sanchez, CNN
This is your big chance to name a baby penguin.
The Tulsa Zoo is asking the public for help in naming an African penguin chick that was born to parents Dassen and Ireland on October 3.
Since the chick’s sex has yet to be determined, the zoo has provided three gender-neutral names to vote on: River, Sandy and Robbie.
The names are derived from the penguin’s designated identification number 4242, the zoo said. River is short for New York Yankee Mariano Rivera, who was No. 42 and a Hall of Fame closing pitcher; Sandy is short for “Sandman,” which is Mariano’s nickname; and Robbie is short for Jackie Robinson, also No. 42 and MLB’s first African-American player.
“This is a timely celebration because this month marks the 20th anniversary of our penguin exhibit,” Seana Flossic, Tulsa Zookeeper and AZA African Penguin Studbook Keeper, said in a news release. “It’s especially meaningful to involve the public in choosing a name for this chick, since the $1.34 million that funded our current penguin exhibit was raised through community donations.”
African penguins are one of the smallest penguin species and are covered in black, white and gray feathers that are not only waterproof but have unique patterns. They are considered an “endangered” species, says the Tulsa Zoo.
Voting on the Tulsa Zoo website will continue through December 31. Zoo officials will announce the name and sex, which is determined by DNA testing, in early 2023.
The CNN Wire
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