'Bowie' The Baby Penguin Is Adorable Tribute To Late Legendary Star

Adorable baby penguin "Bowie" is the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden's newest resident.

The chick, hatched at 6 a.m. Friday morning, was named after iconic British singer David Bowie because they share the same birthday.

The penguin received its new moniker just two days before the 69-year-old star died on Sunday, following an 18-month battle with cancer .

The cute ball of fluff weighed just 1.6 ounces, according to the zoo's official Facebook page.

Staff asked its Facebook fans to name the new arrival and they opted for either "Bowie" or "Elvis." The King of Rock 'N' Roll was also born on Jan. 8.

Since the zoo already had a king penguin named "Elvis," "Bowie" was selected instead. The penguin is the zoo's first newborn of 2016. It joins 32 other "little penguins" in the largest colony in the U.S., according to the Daily Telegraph.

Little penguins are so-called because they are the smallest species of the bird , according to Penguins-World.com. They grow to an average of 13 inches tall and are found on the coastlines of southern Australia, New Zealand and occasionally Chile. They get their "blue penguin" nickname from their slate-blue plumage, which appears as their wing feathers grow large enough for flight .

Zookeeper Jennifer Gainer told Reuters that little penguins prefer milder temperatures , meaning Bowie and his colony would probably not be out until spring.

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