Birmingham’s National Sea Life Centre has opened its brand new attraction – Penguin Ice Adventure – featuring a colony of 12 endangered Gentoo penguins for the aquarium’s visitors.

The penguins, flown in from Auckland, New Zealand, are situated at the entrance to the aquarium and are the first animals to greet guests after they enter the facility. The active birds offer an energetic show to visitors, diving in and out of water up to 450 times a day and playfully moving rocks around their new habitat.

The area offers several different perspectives on the den, with platforms both above and underwater as well as an area to teach guests how to ‘walk like a penguin’.

“Penguin Ice Adventure has been about five years in the making so it’s amazing to finally see the end result and welcome the birds to our attraction,” said James Robson, curator at Sea Life Birmingham.

“They’ve all settled into their brand new enclosure really well. As a colony with a mix of ages, the older birds support, teach and encourage the younger birds, which is lovely to see and has meant that they’ve all made a really smooth transition and are enjoying their new home.”

The National Sea Life Centre is already home to more than 1,000 creatures including hammerhead sharks, a giant sea turtle, seahorses, otters and rays. In addition to Penguin Ice Adventure, the site also features an interactive rockpool, a 4D cinema and a 360 degree Ocean Tunnel.