A baby boom of African penguin chicks hatches at a San Francisco science museum

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A bounty of 10 African penguin chicks has hatched in just over a year at a San Francisco science museum. The California Academy of Sciences announced Tuesday that the penguins hatched from November 2022 through January of this year. Academy officials say the chicks are part of ongoing conservation efforts. African penguins have dwindled to 9,000 breeding pairs in the wild. The chicks at the museum in Golden Park attend fish school, where they learn to swim on their own and eat fish given by biologists. Once ready, they are introduced into the colony.