The penguin formerly known as No.337 formally named Sazanami

JAPAN - Although the media waves he created were anything but small, Tokyo Sea Life Park's penguin No.337 has been named "Sazanami", which translates as "small waves", AFP reports.

Sazamami sounds similar to how "337" is pronounced in Japanese, the aquarium said in a statement, and also he "... came back to the aquarium just as waves ebb and flow, which was another reason for the name".

The competition to name the Humboldt penguin, who spent 82 days at large after escaping from his enclosure, attracted 6,400 entries.

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Runaway penguin in Japan gets new name, 11 July 2012, AFP

No.337 to be more than just a number

JAPAN - His daring escape and subsequent recapture made headlines around the world, and now the Humboldt penguin known only as No.337 will be given a name, reports AFP.

Tokyo Sea Life Park officials, who discovered that No.337 was male during a medical check upon his return to the aquarium (they also found out he had conjunctivitus), have launched a competition for visitors to name the intrepid bird. Entrants are also asked to provide the reason behind their suggested name and are encouraged to watch the penguin first.

"This is a special treatment to express our gratitude to the public for providing information on the bird, and also for cooperating with us by listening to our call not to try to capture him," park official Takashi Sugino said.

The "most appropriate name" for the penguin, who was at large for 82 days, will be picked by a committee comprising the aquarium director, vice director and keepers after nominations close on 1 July.

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Runaway penguin 'No 337' to be named in Japan, AFP, 25 June 2012
Japan's runaway penguin suffering from pink-eye, AFP, 27 May 2012

Penguin No.337 back inside

JAPAN - It had a good run, but No.337's life on the lam is over.

AFP reported that the fugitive Humboldt penguin was captured on Thursday 24 May. It escaped from Tokyo Sea Life Park in early March.

Park staff caught the penguin on the bank of the Ego-gawa river, only 8 km from its home.

During its time on the run (swim?) the young bird had been sighted at least 30 times, and earlier this month even managed to elude the coastguard, which followed it for about an hour before losing sight of it.

Takashi Sugino, the park's spokesman, said that the penguin was uninjured and appeared to be healthy. It will undergo medical checks and spend time in quarantine before being returned to the (currently) 134-strong colony.

To prevent future escapes, the park has fortified the edges of the penguin enclosure with more rocks and sandbags. But will such measures be enough to contain the intrepid No.337?

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Japan's AWOL penguin back in captivity, 25 May 2012, AFP

No.337 spotted alive and well

JAPAN - Fugitive penguin No.337 has been sighted in Tokyo Bay two months after escaping from Tokyo Sea Life Park.

Video footage taken by Japan's Coast Guard earlier in May shows the apparently healthy Humboldt penguin frolicking in the water.

Kazuhiro Sakamoto, the park's deputy director, identified the penguin on the video as No.337.  

"You can see it's got the same ring around its flipper and identical facial patterns," he told Reuters. 

Although if it wasn't No.337 then one might wonder how many escaped penguins there are in Tokyo ...

Sakamoto said that the adventurous penguin didn't look like it had lost any weight. "So it looks as if it's been living quite happily in the middle of Tokyo Bay."

Although the park had received hundreds of reports of sightings of No.337 after its escape, only about 30 of the reports were thought to be genuine.

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Fugitive penguin 337 spotted alive in Tokyo Bay, Reuters, 16 May 2012

Search for No.337 called off

JAPAN - Tokyo Sea Life Park has called off the search for No. 337, the Humboldt penguin who escaped from its enclosure in early March.

Park spokesperson Takashi Sugino told AFP that they believe the penguin is "doing okay somewhere in a river near Tokyo Bay" but after a month of daily searches of the riverbanks they don't know what else to do.

He said, "We hope to get fresh sightings in August, when the bird moults and its adult black-and-white feathers emerge because it will be easier for ordinary people to recognise it as a penguin."

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Japan keepers stand down penguin hunt, AFP, 12 April 2012, Yahoo! News

No. 337: Penguin at large

JAPAN - A Humboldt penguin known only at No. 337 is still on the loose after escaping from Tokyo Sea Life Park at least five days ago.

Keepers were not even aware the one-year-old penguin was missing until they received a photo of it swimming in Tokyo Bay last weekend.

No. 337 had to scale a rock wall and a squeeze through a fence to break out of the penguin enclosure. The height of the rock wall varies between 1.2m and 4m - quite a big leap for Humboldt penguins, which grow to 56-70cm long.

Park staff have speculated that something may have startled the bird, leading it to climb over the wall.

The park has asked Tokyo residents, birdwatchers in particular, for help in finding the bird, and are regularly patrolling the shoreline with binoculars. Humboldts generally stay close to shore, although I don't know if this will apply to No. 337, as this penguin has already proven itself to be quite the adventurer.

Satoshi Toda of the Sea Life Park told AFP that park staff are hopeful the fugitive is still alive after receiving information that it had caught and eaten some fish.

Sources
Fugitive penguin no. 337 flips Tokyo park the bird by Ruairidh Villar, 7 March 2012, Reuters
Japan widens hunt for escaped penguin, Sapa-AFP, 9 March 2012, Times Live