Lope, you things with feathers

May 6, 2020 7:03 AM

Oregon Zoo penguins Nacho and Goat went for a hike in the woods yesterday. Twitter | Threadreader
posted by Johnny Wallflower (16 comments total)

"Oh look a fish shaped thing just laying there, skwak doesn't taste like fish, doesn't have fish beak feel, stupid trees shedding fish shaped leaves"
posted by sammyo at 7:26 AM on May 6, 2020 [2 favorites]

Why doesn't my job entail a penguin seeking me out for cuddles in the middle of a hike? Also, it seemed like the penguins were sure if they were surrounded by a sea of green, they should be able to swim in it!
posted by gladly at 7:29 AM on May 6, 2020 [14 favorites]

When penguins hop unnecessarily, is that equivalent to a rabbit binking? (A "binky" is a hop-twist rabbits do for no reason; it expresses pure joy and comfort).
posted by fatbird at 7:37 AM on May 6, 2020 [2 favorites]

It's hard to imagine a more foreign environment for a penguin than a forest but they obviously enjoyed themselves.
posted by tommasz at 8:03 AM on May 6, 2020 [1 favorite]

Thank you. After a morning spent fighting with people online, at work, over the phone, and in my family, I for one really needed to see some penguins having their comical and evidently pleasurable version of a fish out of water moment.
posted by senor biggles at 8:18 AM on May 6, 2020 [3 favorites]

Last year at the Oregon Zoo: Tiny goats visit penguins

more tiny goat visits
posted by mbrubeck at 8:27 AM on May 6, 2020 [5 favorites]

It’s hard to imagine a more foreign environment for a penguin than a forest

Stares in TAWAKI.
posted by Parasite Unseen at 8:37 AM on May 6, 2020 [3 favorites]

I wish more zoo animals could regularly have experiences like this.
posted by shoesietart at 8:55 AM on May 6, 2020 [1 favorite]

Those look like "jackass" penguins, which frequent the shores of South Africa... Oregon is definitely farther from the pole than ZA, but as a species greenery isn't entirely foreign. :)

Super cute video, though!
posted by kaibutsu at 9:52 AM on May 6, 2020

I did not realize until now how much I want to share the forest with affectionate penguins.
posted by Nerd of the North at 10:26 AM on May 6, 2020 [6 favorites]

How about sharing the forest with affectionate (and really dumb) flightless parrots?
posted by Faint of Butt at 10:32 AM on May 6, 2020 [1 favorite]

I mean, I feel like as a child I knew that there was this employment niche called "zookeeper", but I did not have nearly enough information about how cool it would be.

Because I really think I could have nailed that job.

(p.s. i know it has lots of sadness and frustration and downsides, but so does my current job, and i don't hike with penguins or anything nearly that cool.)
posted by allthinky at 11:07 AM on May 6, 2020 [3 favorites]

Those look like "jackass" penguins, which frequent the shores of South Africa...

These are Humboldt penguins, which are close relatives of African penguins.
posted by joseph_elmhurst at 2:41 PM on May 6, 2020 [2 favorites]

Yay hiking penguins works for me! And thanks for the Awaki link, they are some cool looking creatures.
posted by winesong at 3:48 PM on May 6, 2020

I like the way they each seemed to have moments where the were considering the presence of clover as a potential belly slide opportunity
posted by Kitchen Witch at 5:23 PM on May 6, 2020 [4 favorites]

What an excellent video of penglings in the forest.
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 11:09 PM on May 7, 2020 [1 favorite]