Wales’ top tourist attraction, Folly Farm in Pembrokeshire, celebrated the opening of its new penguin enclosure on Friday, as crowds from across the country watched the zoo’s penguins as they slid, waddled and swam around their new home.
Edwina Hart, Minister for Economy, Science and Transport attended the launch event, cutting the ribbon to open Penguin Coast to the public for the first time. She was assisted by local school children from Tavernspite Primary School, who were invited to be the first children in Wales to meet the new penguins.
The £500,000 investment has been in construction for the past 6 months as penguin fans have been awaiting the arrival of the 24 Peruvian, Humboldt penguins.
The two acre state-of-the-art development has potential to house 40 penguins and contains a penguin nursery, beach area, a 100m3 saltwater pool and a play area with specialised plants and rocks.
Tim Morphew, Zoo Manager at Folly Farm, said: “It was fantastic opening to the public. The excitement has been building since we first announced that the penguins were coming six months ago. Since then, we’ve seen Penguin Coast develop from a design on a piece of paper to the state-of-the-art enclosure we have today.
“Everybody involved with this project has put such a huge amount of effort in – and it’s really paid off. We’d like to thank the designers, the construction team, IAT Life Systems – for their penguin-friendly pump system – and, of course, the network of zoos who have passed on their penguins to us.
“We’re also really grateful to the Minister for coming along and cutting the ribbon, and to all the people who have already come to visit the penguins. They were a little shy at first, but they soon warmed to the attention. They are such fascinating creatures and we really hope that the public enjoy watching them in their new enclosure.”
Minister for the Economy, Edwina Hart, said: “Investing and developing our tourism product is key if we are to drive higher tourism earnings for the Welsh economy. I’m delighted that the Welsh Government through the Tourism Investment Support Scheme has been able to contribute nearly £70,000 for the development. I’d like to congratulate Folly Farm on investing in this new enclosure which will attract new visitors and will refresh the attraction for repeat visitors.
“I’m also pleased that Folly Farm found a Welsh based solution for the pump house needed to create a saltwater environment for the birds by working with IAT, the Anglesey-based international supplier of aquariums and sea life and that they have been able to work with local builders and suppliers where possible.
“I’d like to wish this latest venture every success and I expect the investment will reap the deserved rewards during this special 25th anniversary year.”
Kevin Phelps, headmaster at Tavernspite School, said: “It was very exciting for the children to be here today. We’ve brought pupils from every class and it builds on the work we do in the curriculum. We’re very grateful to Folly Farm for inviting us.”
Many penguin enclosures still operate as freshwater pools with added chlorine, but with questions surrounding the long-term effects of chlorine on penguins, Folly Farm opted for a more natural environment with Wales’ first saltwater penguin pool. The enclosure also has a spacious nesting site for its new additions which is twice the minimum recommended size- giving the penguins more space to ‘dry off’, minimising the risk of fungus which can be harmful to the birds.
The penguin enclosure will be included in Folly Farm’s new offering, ‘The Zoo Keeper Experience’. This experience gives families the opportunity to experience a behind the scenes tour of the zoo conducted by a top Zoo Keeper and families will also have the opportunity to feed the animals.