Baby penguin gives Prague Zoo hope of breeding boom A baby Humboldt penguin born at Prague zoo on October 18 is making progress, giving its breeders hope that the local flock of 30 birds will begin to reproduce again. The zoo, which used to have 15 baby penguins a year, recently curbed the penguin reproduction programme as the capacity of European zoos was filled, and it has been grappling with a low fertilisation rate ever since. The last Humboldt penguin was born here three years ago. The zoo also uses a unique method of discerning penguins with the help of dots on their bellies, whose shapes are as unique as fingerprints, according to the breeders. Some penguins even owe their names to the shape of this so-called body printing, including a bird called Starlet. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES