#Closed aquarium sends penguins on Chicago Bears’ stadium field trip

Amid COVID-19 cases rising nationwide, Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium announced temporary but immediate plans to voluntarily close through the rest of the year on Tuesday (after reopening in June following its initial pandemic closure). But just because humans aren’t allowed inside doesn’t mean the penguin residents can’t have a good time.

Instead, the flightless seabirds got to take an unprecedented trip to the city’s Soldier Field, home to the Chicago Bears and the city’s soccer team, the Chicago Fire. The stadium is currently open to human fans on a limited basis.

“Just in time for the height of fall football season, Da Penguins visited our neighbor,” the aquarium tweeted, alongside footage of four black-and-white birds storming the field and locker rooms. In the video, penguins are seen running toward but not interacting with a football and a soccer ball, before the sweet creatures’ caretakers hold them in the middle of the empty arena.

“During the visit, the birds experienced several new sounds, smells and sensations, like the grass under their feet, as they waddled across the field, which was set up for a Chicago Fire soccer match,” the aquarium wrote in a press release. “Variety like this is important for the welfare of the birds, ensuring that just like in the wild, no two days are ever the same.”

Penguins Izzy and Darwin, a bonded pair of Magellanic penguins, have been having a very active pandemic, having previously visited Chicago’s Field Museum and Museum of Contemporary Art. The other penguins, Tombo and Charlotte, were new to the COVID field-tripping experience. Still other tuxedo birds have gone on more local adventures, exploring their closed-to-visitors home turf and checking in on other aquarium residents.

Those neighbors have also stayed busing during the pandemic: There has been a baby boom of whales and dolphins in the past few months.

For those curious to hear firsthand what the penguins thought of the experience, the Shedd is currently offering virtual penguin encounters.