Penguin Couple Go On First Date At An Empty History Museum

In the cutest news you'll see all week, Chicago's Shedd Aquarium let two of their penguins out on a date to the nearby Field Museum, to check out their dinosaur exhibits.

Due to coronavirus closures, little Izzy and Darwin were allowed to roam the empty museum freely, and take in all the incredible artefacts.

Check out this adorable video below:

It was quite an exciting adventure for the pair, who have barely stepped foot out of their aquarium confines.

And they looked absolutely transfixed as they waddled around, checking out all the incredible displays, including Máximo the Titanosaur - the largest ever discovered - and SUE the T.Rex - the most complete Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton in existence, standing at a huge 40 feet long and 13 feet tall at the hip.

Field Museum)

Remaining side-by-side as they took in their surroundings, the penguin couple were the only ones in sight, seeing as the museum is still preparing to re-open to the public.

So, they got a rare opportunity for some alone time.

Field Museum)

Speaking to Insider, the Field Museum's spokesperson Katharine Uhrich said that the penguins were very inquisitive throughout their visit.

She recalled: "There were some benches in SUE's suite that they were very curious about.

"These are Magellanic penguins and, during their nesting season, they're very curious about spaces.

Field Museum)

"They were checking out what was under the benches - maybe to see if it was a good nest!"

She added that it was actually "surprisingly easy" to prepare the museum for the penguin's visit.

"We had to get the right permissions to have staff in the building, because we've been really careful about safety protocols and only having essential staff," she said.

Field Museum)

"Then we deferred to Shedd on what was the safest for the penguins and they came with animal caretakers and all their knowledge. It was great."

What a lucky penguin pair!

The Shedd Aquarium has been laying on a series of adventures for its penguins since the pandemic meant they had to close to the public.

They recently let them out to explore the aquarium facilities, too. You can read more about that here.

On their trip outside of their enclosure, they got to meet the Beluga whales. Plus, they also gave some of the black-and-white creatures a chance to check out the piranhas and sea otters in their enclosures.

Izzy and Darwin's trip comes just ahead of the Field Museum's re-opening on Friday (July 24th), debuting its brand new exhibition of Native American artwork, called Apsáalooke Women and Warriors, which was open for only one day before coronavirus closures.

The Shedd Aquarium will follow not long afterwards on July 3rd.

Topics: Life News, Cute, Life, Coronavirus, Animals

Joanna Freedman

Joanna is a journalist at Tyla with a particular interest in highlighting women's issues and telling inspiring first person stories. She's also their resident foodie, and loves covering exciting new beauty launches, too. Contact her at [email protected].

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