March to the penguins: Little blue penguins lead UC San Diego’s Birch Aquarium to record attendance

A new habitat featuring the smallest species of penguins in the world has proven immensely popular at UC San Diego’s Birch Aquarium, helping lead to record attendance.

Aquarium officials say the Birch attracted 523,703 visitors during the fiscal year that ended on June 30. It was the first time the aquarium attracted more than 500,000 people, and it broke the standing record of 496,651 visitors set during the year ending on June 30, 2019.

Just over a year ago, Birch opened a $2.8 million habitat for little blue penguins, noisy but cute birds that stand only 10 to 12 inches tall and weigh about 3 pounds, or roughly as much as a MacBook Pro laptop. The habitat represents the biggest expansion at Birch in more than 30 years, and one of its most sophisticated animal care centers.

The aquarium also prospered due to “our new Behind-the-Scenes Tours, extended Seasonal Hours, Oceans at Night 21-and-up events, and the opening of our ‘Blue Beach’ installation,” said Harry Helling, executive director of the aquarium, which is part of UCSD’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Birch also drew a lot of attention from the public in March when an unusually large number of weedy seadragons — about 70 — were hatched at the aquarium. The tiny creatures have long been a favorite because of their ethereal appearance and curious way of hanging in the water column.