The penguins are fed twice per day, at 10 am and 3 pm (local time) and they get to eat as much as they want. How much each penguin eats is recorded to help monitor their health. The penguins frequently lay eggs and Kansas City Zoo has had several successful hatchings of both king and gentoo penguin chicks. All of the penguins have names, and Zoo staff can tell them apart by the bands they wear on their flippers.
King penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) are the second largest of the penguin species, after the Emperor penguins. They weigh around 15kg and stand up to around 95cms. The king penguins are easily recognisable by the vivid orange feathers on their heads and upper chests. In the wild, King penguins only come ashore during the breeding season and to moult. They raise one chick every other year as it takes approximately nine months for a king chick to fledge.
Macaroni penguins are recognisable by their bright yellow plumes on their heads. One of six species of crested penguin, it is very closely related to the royal penguin. Macaroni penguins are the largest of the crested penguins. While some penguins waddle, macaroni penguins hop.