Keepers at an aquarium in Japan were surprised by the exquisite tastes of the native penguins, who show a preference for highquality fish over cheaper ones. The birds’ rejection of other feeding options was recorded by the experts and shows that some of them are turning their beaks to the easier types of feeding.
The small protest took place at the Hakoneen Aquarium in Kanagawa, southwest of Tokyo. In the footage, an employee at the facility waves a mackerel near a penguin to get its attention, but the animal ignores him.
The caretaker insists and moves the fish closer to the penguin’s beak, but he walks away. The same reaction has been seen in an otter filling and then leaving the fish.
Aquarium management points out that this strange behavior by penguins and other animals is related to inflation and rising food prices, CNN affiliate TV Asahi reported.
The country’s economic situation has prompted those responsible for the species to change their diet and give preference to inexpensive products. However, the animals apparently refuse to accept the new reality.
In the past, keepers offered penguins and otters the fish “Aji”, also known as horse mackerel, which the animals liked to eat. But its price has risen 20% to 30% since 2021, prompting managers to look for food alternatives that don’t weigh heavily on costs. Therefore, the janitors began to serve mackerel.
Hakoneen Aquarium is home to 32,000 animals including sharks, penguins, otters and seals. Since the diet change did not go down well with most, staff had to get creative to encourage the animals to expand their taste buds. Some experiments were successful, for example mixing mackerel with the penguins’ favorite aji caught their attention and encouraged them to try the new meal.
“Ideally, they’d like a full aji, but they’re patiently eating mackerel,” explained hobbyist Hiroki Shimamoto.
The official claimed that penguins and otters have their favorite species of fish and the aquarium is always looking for the best solution for their needs.
“All aquarium animals are family and we do our best to keep them healthy. We would never force animals to eat anything they don’t want. We want as many people as possible to visit Hakone and be close to our animals delight.”
The cost reduction does not only apply to the feed of the animals. Management has also reduced the use of circulating pumps from two to one, which has so far contributed to savings of 40% to 50% in electricity consumption.
“We could increase the aquarium entry fee and fix this issue, but we want to do our best to keep our facility in a convenient place for our guests. We have no plans to raise ticket prices,” Shimamoto said.