VIDEO: Penguins at San Francisco Zoo graduate from 'fish school' in socially distanced celebration

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Six Magellanic penguin chicks that hatched in May finally graduated from "fish school" on Saturday. In the San Francisco Zoo's annual ritual, March of the Penguins, the animals waddled their way to their new home on Penguin Island to celebrate.

The chicks, five males and one female, were initially reared by their parents or foster parents before being sent to "fish school," where they were taught how to swim, eat whole fish and socialize with their caretakers, officials with the SF Zoo said.

During the event, the chicks were guided by animal care staff to Penguin Island's 200-foot-long pool where the chicks could be seen swimming and exploring their new habitat.

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The March of the Penguins is usually one of the zoo's most popular events, however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a scaled-down version was held as a fundraiser. A limited number of guests were allowed to attend and line up in socially distanced circles, zoo officials say.

The public helped raised funds and two winners of a drawing were able to name two of the male chicks -- "Talented Mr. Slippery" and "Rookie."



The SF Zoo now has 56 Magellanic penguins.