Meet Pesto, the adorable baby penguin going viral after Moo Deng

Moo Deng is still making the rounds online but a new adorable animal is also on the rise. Meet Pesto, the chonkiest baby penguin you’ll ever see.

The whole world is collectively avoiding reality and their responsibilities by fixating on adorable animals—and really, who can blame them? The now-beloved and viral pygmy hippo, Moo Deng, continues its global stardom from the confines of its pen in Khao Khaew Zoo thanks to memes, fanart, and a recently launched livestream that allows fans to watch her 24/7. Now the world is also falling in love with yet another cute animal: Pesto the penguin. Why has Pesto become so popular? Why are all these adorable animals named after food? And what the heck are they feeding these animals?

Meet chonky king penguin chick Pesto who’s been making the rounds online 

Pesto is a resident of the Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium. The king penguin chick was born back in January weighing a very normal, very reasonable 200 grammes. Now nine months old, Pesto weighs… a little more than that. 

With a diet of up to 30 fish per day and a combination of “nature [and] nurture” according to a marine biologist the BBC spoke to, Pesto is now an absolutely humongous unit of a bird at 22.5 kilogrammes. In fact, he’s heavier than both his parents combined. It’s not difficult at all to spot Pesto within the penguin enclosure: he’s the large chonky brown one waddling around in the sea of black-and-white penguins. 

Unlike his hippo counterpart, Pesto is well-behaved and chatty according to penguin keeper Emily Thornton in an interview with AFP reported by News.com.au. Marine biologist Jacinta Early also told the BBC that Pesto is usually the first to say hi to the keepers and has fallen in love with them.

Early assures that despite his chubby appearance, Pesto is healthy and that half of the weight is partly due to his fluff. Also somewhat sadly, Early says that Pesto will eventually “slim down nice and sleek”.

For now, we can all enjoy this chonky unit while he remains the chonky unit he is. Follow Sea Life Melbourne on Facebook and Instagram to stay updated on what Pesto is up to—or what he’s eating. 

[Hero image: Sea Life Melbourne FB]