IT was a party with a difference when a bunch of penguins celebrated their birthday.

Ten of the 22 penguins at Scarborough's Sea Life Centre originally hatched in April – so their enclosure was decorated and the birds presented with a frozen fish cake as a special treat.

Head of animal care Lyndsey Crawford-Darwell said: “We have a thriving colony of Humboldt penguins here at the centre and with so many birthdays in one month we wanted to have a bit of a party.

“Humboldt penguins generally breed from March to August so we’ve had a lot of chicks born in April over the past few years. We’re right in the middle of breeding season at the moment so fingers crossed we will get a few more chicks this year as well.”

The birthday birds were Custard, George, Calimero, Gonzo, Clumsey, Krusty, Pinky, Mavis, Sushi and Peso. The youngest, Custard turned two, while the oldest, Clumsey, turned 16.

Humboldt penguins are found in Chile and Peru in the wild and are a vulnerable species as climate change and overfishing is threatening their food source and causing numbers to decline.

And the Sea Life Centre at Scarborough is part of a European breeding programme to help conserve the birds and maintain genetic diversity.