Pittsburgh Zoo Brings Back 'Penguins On Parade'

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PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- One of the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium's favorite winter activities is back for another year.

The zoo's annual tradition of the Penguins on Parade was supposed to kick off last weekend, but it was canceled due to the unseasonably warm weather.

Instead, the first parade of the season was held Wednesday.

It is held every Saturday and Sunday, beginning at 11:30 a.m. outside of the aquarium, weather permitting, of course.

"If people want to see the penguins on parade, Saturdays and Sundays, 11:30 [a.m.], check out website first, because, if it's too warm, 45 [degrees] is our cut off. We want people to be excited about coming out and seeing them, but we don't want them to be disappointed. Animals are our concern," said the zoo's Henry Kacprzyk.

Zookeepers say the parade is not only fun for the visitors, but for the penguins as well. They say getting outside is "great enrichment for them."

"If it's not slippery or anything, then we let them walk down the pathway and have people lined up on either side," Kacprzyk said. "If there's a lot of snow, we actually let them do something else, we ramp up the snow and we let them cavort through the snow, so people get to see them more playing than parading."

For more information on the Penguins on Parade, visit the zoo's website here.