Monday, Jun. 24, 2013
Leona the Penguin, Germany
It could have been a disaster. But thanks to some good fortune — and a bunch of fish — a curious young penguin survived a trip to the lions' den. The African penguin, just a few months old, kicked off 2011 by waddling out of its enclosure at the Münster Zoo in Germany and was exploring the wider zoo world when it ended up in the lions' territory. The cats, as luck and feline habits would have it, were asleep, and zookeepers eventually managed to get the flightless bird out of harm's way with a trail of herrings. The penguin formerly known as No. 459 has since been dubbed Leona.