'Confused' Penguins Miss Seeing Zoo Visitors Amid COVID Lockdowns

Thailand is currently experiencing its biggest coronavirus outbreak to date. To mitigate the spread of the virus, the country has instituted strict lockdown orders, which has forced many businesses to shutter, including zoos.

But people aren't the only ones affected by these new measures—Thai zookeepers told Reuters Thursday that their penguins miss human visitors.

"I noticed that they felt a bit confused because when they walk out, there's usually a lot of people waiting for them," said Tossapol Kosol, a penguin specialist at the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chonburi. "Now when they come out and there's no one here, they sometimes stop to look around, as if they're wondering where all the people have gone."

Penguins are known to be among the most social of all birds. They are colonial, meaning they tend to swim and feed in groups, and even nest in huge colonies called "rookeries." According to SeaWorld, some rookeries include hundreds of thousands of penguins.

There are an estimated 17-19 different species of penguins, most of which live in the southern hemisphere. But due to climate change, habitat loss and commercial fishing, National Geographic reported about two-thirds of penguins are listed as threatened on the IUCN Red List.

Under the Endangered Species Act, all penguins are legally protected. And as part of conservation management, many penguins have been relocated to zoos and aquariums across the country, where they are fed and cared for by specialists.

Of course, while those animals that lie in captivity love their keepers, they love seeing zoo guests, too.

Last year, many zoos reported that their animals felt lonely without visitors. Dan Ashe, president of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, told The New Yorker: "It's fair to say animals miss people as much as people miss animals ... The variety of smells that come through the zoo every day are enrichment for them. Their day is less interesting or varied without us."

Penguin specialists at Khao Kheow Open Zoo echoed Ashe's sentiments and explained that they've had to be extra attentive to their penguins during this new wave of lockdowns.

Kosol told Reuters that he and his colleagues have had to find new ways to exercise the penguins due to the lack of stimulation typically brought by guests. He said that once carers are done feeding the penguins their 55 pounds of mackerel, they march the penguins to their enclosure, where they can swim for exercise.

"They must be wondering why it's always the same faces, where are the children and their parents," zoo director Tawin Rattanawongsawat said. "They must be a bit lonely."

Thailand reported a record 20,920 COVID cases in one day on August 5, bringing the country's total number of cases to 693,305 since the start of the pandemic, according to the WHO.