Watch Edinburgh Zoo’s one-eyed penguin enjoying snow after returning to colony following second operation
Footage shows Poly the Penguin in her modified recovery suit after an operation on her eye socket and later enjoying the snow with the rest of her colony.
A one-eyed Northern rockhopper penguin at Edinburgh Zoo has made a full recovery after a second operation on her eye socket.
Vets from the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) worked with ophthalmology specialists from the University of Edinburgh’s Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies to treat a serious infection in Poly’s eye socket.
The wildlife conservation charity fitted Poly with a modified recovery suit, which is normally used for cats, to allow fluid to drain while she healed. With the drain removed, she moved back in with the colony, just in time to celebrate Penguin Awareness Day today (January 20 2026).
In the wild, Northern rockhopper penguins are found in the Tristan da Cunha and Gough Island group in the South Atlantic Ocean. They are classified as Endangered by the IUCN Red List, having suffered a population decline of over 90% since the 1950s - attributed to climate change, overfishing, pollution and invasive species.
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