Penguin back in zoo after visit to the suburbs
November 16, 1998
Web posted at: 10:37 p.m. EST (0337 GMT)
MELBOURNE, Australia (CNN) -- Australian authorities
have put to rest the case of the suburban penguin.
Police in Melbourne got a report from someone who
spotted one of the flightless birds in a back yard in
the St. Albans area.
The penguin had been stolen from a penguin
rookery in Melbourne by a teen-ager who thought the
bird would make a nice pet. But neighbors spotted the
penguin, undernourished and pecking around the
teen-ager's yard, and called the police.
The authorities rescued the bird and took him away
for a medical checkup. Police said he had been at
the teen-ager's house for about 10 days.
"It's an animal that likes to be with other penguins,"
said Keilor Downs of the RSPCA. "They live in
colonies, so I guess that it would have been stressful
for him living all alone," Downs said.
After the medical checkup, the bird was taken to the
Melbourne Zoo for a fish dinner and a nice long
swim.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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