The oldest Magellanic penguin at the San Francisco Zoo and Gardens died on Wednesday at the age of 40. He was one of the oldest penguins in human care anywhere in the world, according to the zoo.

The male penguin, named Captain Eo, was estimated to be well over the species’ average lifespan of 20 to 30 years.

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According to the zoo, the ageing animal had lost much of his vision and hearing and required special feeding techniques.

Captain Eo had 26 children, 31 grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren. Many can be found in other zoos and institutions across the country.

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Captain Eo was named after a Michael Jackson short film that was in the 1980s, and he was the zoo’s last remaining founding member of the colony of Magellanic penguins.

The Magellanic penguin is indigenous to South America. They can grow to be over 2 feet (60 centimetres) tall and weigh up to 14 pounds (6.4 kilograms).

Captain Eo arrived at the zoo in 1984, when 52 wild Magellanic penguins were brought in to establish a colony on Penguin Island, a habitat with a large outdoor pool, burrows, and rocky landscapes to mimic their native habitat, according to the zoo.

According to Quinn Brown, the zoo’s assistant curator of birds, Captin Eo had the personality of “an older sophisticated gentleman.”

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Brown stated -“He did not partake in the usual shenanigans of stealing fish from others, or pushing his way through the crowd for fish. Instead, he would quietly and politely sit on the rocky beach and wait his turn for his meal, then go out for a swim or home. He was one-of-a-kind.“

Brown added -“While we will never have the honor of embracing and connecting with Captain in this way again, he will always have a monumental place in our hearts,” Brown said. “He represented a part of San Francisco Zoo history and the penguin world that cannot ever be forgotten.”