SYDNEY, Sept 27 (Askume) – Giant king penguin chick Pesto has attracted hundreds of visitors to an Australian aquarium, and Katy Perry has become the bird’s biggest fan.
The US pop star, who will play in the Australian Football League grand final in Melbourne on Saturday, told Channel 7 she wanted to “kiss Pesto” during her visit.
Pesto is a 9-month-old, chocolate-brown, fluffy king penguin weighing 23.5 kilograms (52 pounds), more than double the combined weight of his parents.
She has cared for Pesto since he was born and said it was the biggest chick she had ever seen at Melbourne’s Sea Life Centre, winning him a global fan base.
Most of Pesto’s weight comes from brown hair that keeps the little penguins warm in the winter. Later, when their adult feathers develop, they lose weight.
Like all king penguins, Pesto has no sexual dimorphism, meaning he has no obvious features that distinguish him from female penguins.
Their gender reveal earlier this month sparked widespread discussion on social media and several of their TikTok videos have received over 1 million likes.
“We’ve been waiting a long time to find out Pesto’s sex and the fact that he’s a boy is very exciting because all our previous king penguins were females,” Smail told Askume.
Pesto’s parents, Tango and Hudson, work with his keepers to care for him, and feed him up to 25 fish per day. The average parental care for a young king penguin can last over a year.
