One of the Humboldt penguins in Woodland Park Zoo’s new exhibit has died after a brief illness related to the ingestion of a sealant material used in a concealed pipe in the exhibit’s pool.

Dr. Darin Collins, the zoo’s director of animal health, said the 18-year-old male penguin had not regained a normal appetite following its normal molting period and was receiving intensive medical care for a suspected intestinal blockage.

Pathology results are expected within one to two weeks to aid in the cause of death determination, according to the zoo.

Zoo staff located the source of the material and removed it. There have been ongoing inspections to locate any loose pieces of the sealant in portions of the exhibit’s pool, according to the zoo.

The penguin, named Chiquito, arrived in March from Brookfield Zoo in Chicago. He was part of a newly-established colony of 20 penguins for the zoo’s new penguin exhibit, which opened in May.

“We are very saddened by the unexpected death of this penguin," said zoo Curator Mark Myers. "The colony has brought so many smiles and laughter to our zoo guests who have enjoyed the agility and grace of these birds in a dramatically new exhibit. Our dedicated penguin staff have gotten to know each penguin as an individual and they provide close oversight for each bird.”

Veterinary staff performed an endoscopy and X-rays Aug. 13 on one of two other penguins that are currently under veterinary care for similar, but less severe, symptoms, according to the zoo.

“No foreign objects were found in the upper gastrointestinal tract,” said Collins. “While the prognosis remains guarded at this time, a steady to normal recovery is expected over days to weeks.”

Myers said each bird’s food intake is closely monitored, and any bird that does not consume a normal amount of fish during a feeding is placed under close observation.

“Unfortunately, some penguins do have a bad habit of ingesting foreign objects," he said. "So, we constantly conduct visual sweeps of their environment daily for anything that could be hazardous to the birds.”

The new colony of penguins was brought to Seattle from various zoos and aquariums through recommendations by the Humboldt Penguin Species Survival Plan to ultimately form a breeding colony and help heighten awareness about the plight of Humboldt penguins in the wild, according to the zoo.

Humboldt penguins, an endangered species, can live up to 30 years in zoos and approximately 20 years in the wild. It is estimated that only 12,000 endangered Humboldt penguins survive in the wild.