Obama ruffled a few feathers by making his first appearance at Folly Farm, but not in the way you might expect. The penguin keepers at the Pembrokeshire zoo have named the milestone 20th chick Obama after the charismatic former president, but he’s not the only famous head of state to make a splash at Penguin Coast.

The Humboldt penguins at Folly Farm have been busy laying eggs, with eight chicks expected before the end of April, bringing the colony up to 36 once they have all hatched.

The four chicks that have hatched so far have all been named after US presidents, with Lincoln, Washington, Nixon, and Obama already taken, and four eggs still yet to hatch.

This is Folly Farm’s fourth waddle of Humboldt penguins, with each chick weighing around 73-76 grams when born and small enough to fit in the palm of a hand.

Penguin keeper Catrin Thomas, 28, said: “Each year we pick a different theme for naming the penguins. In the past we’ve gone for ice lollies, characters from Disney, and characters from The Simpsons, and this year we decided to name them after US presidents because penguins look a bit like they’re wearing tuxes when they’re fully grown.

“The presidents’ names work well as they’re also unisex, and we won’t be able to tell if the penguins are boys or girls until they are around 12-weeks-old.”

“Obama is the 20th penguin chick to hatch here at Folly Farm, and this is our fourth year of welcoming chicks, but I still feel like a proud mum every time. Although Obama’s only a few weeks old, he’s got some pretty big shoes to fill to live up to his namesake.

“Obama has two very proud parents in Donna and Diavlo. Donna can be a bit shy, but is a real home bird and loves to build a nest, and Diavlo would definitely win the best dad award - he takes turns with Donna to make sure Obama is safe and warm by keeping him inside the brood pouch.”

When a penguin hatches, the keepers weigh them each day for the first two weeks to make sure they keep putting on weight, and they’re fed around four times a day with regurgitated fish from their parents.

Once all the chicks have hatched they will spend up to 12 weeks with their parents, before being booted out of the nest and taken to penguin nursery where they will learn penguin life skills.

Once the keepers are happy they can swim and eat fish by themselves, they will then have the chance to explore the two-acre state-of-the-art Penguin Coast enclosure, one of the most technologically advanced and environmentally friendly in the UK. The pump house ensures that the saltwater pool stays clean and filtered and regulates temperature as well as the salt levels - all of which helps to create an environment that closely resembles the Humboldt penguins’ natural habitat in the wild.