African Penguins

On our vacation this year to Gatlinburg, Tennessee we went to Ripleys Aquarium of the Smokies. At Ripleys Aquarium there are lots of things to do.  One of my favorite things to do is to go see the African penguins. I love birds in general, so I love to see the penguins. When it is time to feed the penguins you can watch the people feed them.  We didn't get to watch this year, but it is something to see.

THE  AFRICAN PENGUIN'S HABITAT

Ripleys Aquarium gives their penguins a rocky area to live in with den-like places for them to go inside of. They have plenty of water to swim in and drink. They also have an area outside that they can swim to and you can see them if you go to the outside area.  There are no pictures of this area because it was raining and we didn't have an umbrella.



MEET EDDIE
Eddie is a six year old African Penguin. We stop by to see Eddie every time we go because our grandpa's name is Ed. All the penguins have a tag around one of their wings.  Eddie has a blue tag wrapped around his wing that has his name on it that can be seen in all the pictures of him.

SWIM NOT FLY
Penguins can't fly, but they can swim. The penguins have plenty of swimming area inside and outside. Their wings are different than the wings of birds that can fly, so they can't fly but they can swim underwater. Their body shape also helps them swim underwater.

Maggie



Riley

PENGUINS ON LAND
Penguins have webbed flat feet. They might seem a bit clumsy on land, but that's because their legs are close together and short, and they wobble back and forth when they walk.

MOLTING
A molt is a when a bird  loses their feathers and gets new feathers. They might look scrappy when they're in a molt, but they can't  keep the same feathers forever.

Wings of America

I am on vacation with my family in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. We went to Dollywood in Pigeon Forge where we saw a live show called "Wings of America." They do this show several times a day, with birds that cannot be released into the wild.This is a link to a website about how to help birds.

American Eagle Foundation

Tecumseh is the name of the Golden Eagle  in the picture above.
Tecumseh was hatched in a zoo and can't be released into the wild.



America is the name of the Bald Eagle in the picture above.
America was relocated for a re-population project. Shortly after he was released in Tennessee he got shot in the left wing in Michigan. Due to his wing injury he can't fly, so he couldn't get released into the wild.



Bonita is the name of the Crested Caracara in the picture above.
Bonita also got shot in the wing and she recovered from it, but still couldn't be released into the wild.

Cujo is the Black Vulture in the picture above.
Cujo wasn't afraid of humans when he was found and they think that he was raised by humans and then later when he got older they released him. Since he isn't afraid of humans he couldn't be released.

Tuck is the African Pied Crow in the picture above.
He was approximately six months old when they got him and they trained him to take donations and put them in the donation box at the end of the show. He only takes bills. If you give him coins he will swallow them whole.

Mikie is the name of  the the Harris' Hawk in the picture above . He was hatched
at the American Eagle Foundation and was raised by Golden Eagles
as an experiment, so he thinks he is a Golden Eagle.

Jesse is the name of  the Red-Tailed Hawk in the picture above. She was hatched and raised,
so she is used to humans.

Poe is the name of the Northern Raven in the picture above. She got
a wing  injury and cant fly. She also wasn't afraid of humans and thinks she is one of us

Golden Eagle -Tecumseh during the show





Bald Eagle - America during the show

Black Cochins

My older sister, Kayley, was going to show her Black Cochin chickens at the fair this year. She completed her project, but couldn't bring them to the fair.  She has a male named Twilight and a female named Stormfly.

Twilight and Stomfly

The book American Standed of Perfection says they should have a single comb with 5 rounded points and bright, clear eyes. Females should be round with soft, fluffy feathers (balls of fluff and feathers) and males should be broad and big.  They both have feathers covering their legs and 3 outer toes.  They also both have large capes and tails so big that they collide, hiding the back. Females should be about 9 lbs and males about 11 lbs.

black cochin chick

Cochins are very good pet chickens. They sit in your lap like a cat and are very ornamental. "Black cochins have a beatiful green gleam on their feathers and an intelligent shine in their eyes," says Kayley. They are also very friendly, calm, and quiet.  The roosters are not violent, only skittish. Although they aren't great layers,with medium size eggs, they are great mothers and can foster other chickens and even ducks. They are often broody.

Cochins can be black, blue, or splash.  By breeding two blue cochins you can get blue, black, or splash offspring. By breeding a splash cochin with a blue or black cochin, you can add color to the feathering.  My sister has a pair of black and a pair of blue cochins. She also has two female splash cochins.  They are very dirty right now because we have had a lot of rain, so they are not in show condition.




blue cochin hen - she is broody right now - her name is Blue



 splash cochin hen - she is broody right now - her name is Fred

Fluffkins and Blue - blue cochins

Dave and Fred - splash cochin hens - when they were little we thought that they were males

Cochins are in the Asiatic class and originated in China.  They were reconized for their "prettiness" and started " fancy"  poultry like we know it today. 

I think that my sister's Black Cochins are nice and pretty birds.  Stormfly dosen't like it when she is on a nest and you take the eggs from underneath her.  When you do reach under her to take the eggs, she makes weird noises.

Dave and Fred as chicks

Blue as a chick

Fluffkins as a chick