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Penguins wander around Chicago aquarium closed due to coronavirus

With a Chicago aquarium closed to the public, some penguins got to explore all around and visit other animals.

CHICAGO (TEGNA) — With Chicago's Shedd Aquarium closed to the public to combat the spread of coronavirus, some of the animals are getting a chance to explore their home even more.

Without any guests in the building, animal caretakers are finding new experiences and activities to keep the aquarium residents active.

Some of the penguins recently got to go on their very own field trips to check out areas that would typically be off-limits to them, including Shedd's rotunda.

Wellington, a rockhopper penguin, met some of the other animals in the aquarium's Amazon Rising exhibit. According to a statement from the aquarium, Wellington seemed most interested by several of the freshwater fish species, including the red-bellied piranhas and the black-barred silver dollars.

And Monte, the Magellanic penguin, even got to have an up-close encounter with the Pacific white-sided dolphins.

And what would a field trip be without a souvenir photo?

Some of the caretakers who are onsite 24/7 during the coronavirus closure posed for a quick picture with some of the penguins during their explorations.

Meanwhile, Edward and Annie, a bonded pair of rockhopper penguins did some exploring all around while the building was closed.

"While this may be a strange time for us, these days feel normal for animals at Shedd. Our caregivers are constantly providing new experiences for the animals to explore and express their natural behaviors with," Shedd Aquarium tweeted.


While the doors remain shut to the public, the aquarium plans to use its social media channels to keep sharing updates about all the animal adventures.

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