Penguins and Turtles and Sharks. Oh My! Discover Sea Life Caverns, home to more than 200 species of colourful fish, sting rays, reptiles and more. Get hands on in our touch pool or enjoy one of our daily live animal presentations. Be sure to say hello to our colony of African penguins in their brand new renovated habitat. An underwater world of adventure awaits.

Baby Penguin Gets Name!

The newest member of West Edmonton Mall's African Penguin Colony now has a name. Dayo, which means "joy arrives" in the African language, was chosen from among the hundreds of entries the Mall received in our "Name the Penguin" contest. The name was submitted by Gary K. of Fort Kent, Alberta.

Dayo hatched on May 25, 2008 and is growing quickly. Dayo has learned to swim and preen while in the water and is now eating the same amount of food as an adult penguin. The young penguin is easily recognizable among its peers in the penguin habitat with its juvenile plumage and "white eyebrow" look over each eye.

Dayo, whose parents are Toucan and Shadow, is the 10th chick to have hatched at the Mall, bringing the population of West Edmonton Mall's black and white seabird colony to 24. The African penguin is a threatened species and West Edmonton Mall, an accredited member of the Canadian Association of Zoos and Aquariums, has participated in the African Penguin Species Survival Plan since 1986.

West Edmonton Mall thanks everyone who submitted names in our "Name the Penguin" contest. Our Marine Life team, which had the task of choosing from among the entries, was impressed by the selection and the thought behind each suggestion.

Dayo at 108 days old

Dayo has a white eyebrow over each eye which shows a definite personality

Penguin habitat gets a complete makeover!

Renovations are complete on the penguin habitat in Sea Life Caverns, providing WEM s African penguins with a new naturalistic environment that mimics their natural habitat. Visitors to Sea Life Caverns will enjoy an improved penguin viewing and presentation area where they will be able to watch more of the colony’s natural behavior and group dynamics such as preening, squabbling over territory and chasing fish. The habitat also incorporates state-of-the-art engineering for water conservation and water quality.

Sea Life Caverns is located on Level One, South side of the Santa Maria Ship and Deep Sea Adventure. Please note that Sea Life Caverns is only accessible by stairs. West Edmonton Mall apologizes for the inconvenience this causes our special needs guests.