22 February 2026

Penguin Trough Location in Heartopia (&Favorite Food for Penguin)

By newsgame

The Winter Frost Event in Heartopia has introduced a ton of new mechanics, cozy activities, and special animal visitors that encourage players to slow down and explore the world more thoughtfully. From the Frostspore Fishes and Birds to the Frostspore Butterflies, there were so many magical critters to find this season.

One of the newest additions to this event is the arrival of Penguins. These adorable seasonal creatures come with their own storyline, feeding preferences, and friendship progression. This guide covers everything you need to know about unlocking Penguins, finding the Penguin Trough, and building your friendship levels with them in Heartopia.

Heartopia Food Price List

Here is how much every food item sells for in Heartopia.

How to Unlock Penguins in Heartopia

Penguins are unlocked through a Major Discovery quest initiated by the NPC Naughty during Week 4 of the Winter Frost Event. The quest begins when Naughty asks you to investigate something unusual near the Onsen area. While exploring, you will find a strange, wet bird feather lying in the sand close to the Onsen. This item is labeled as the Strange Bird Feather and serves as the starting point for the penguin discovery storyline.

After finding the Strange Bird Feather, the next step is to take it to Bailey J. When speaking with Bailey J, select the Strange Bird Feather dialogue option to progress the quest. Upon examining the item, Bailey J reveals that the feather appears to belong to a penguin.

The quest objective changes, and you are directed to speak with Annie. Once you find Annie, choose the dialogue option related to penguins. This conversation advances the Major Discovery quest and leads you toward another key NPC, Harry, who has his own major discovery.

After gathering information from Harry, Annie pieces everything together and explains that real penguins have been attracted to Heartopia by a fake penguin that had previously appeared during the Winter Frost Event. Once this dialogue sequence is completed, you’ll unlock Penguins, and they will start appearing in Heartopia.

Where to Find Penguin Trough in Heartopia

Penguins are exclusive to the Winter Frost Event in Heartopia and can’t be found otherwise. Once Week Four begins in your region, penguins can be found in Winter Utopia, specifically around the Onsen Mountain area. Penguins prefer cold weather conditions and are most active during Snow and Rain.

The Penguin Trough is located along the path that leads toward the Concert Portal, an area players frequently pass through during events in Heartopia. The trough can be found between the igloo and the entrance to the concert venue. Since it blends into the winter scenery, it is easy to miss if you are sprinting through the area.

You can use your in-game phone to check the weather forecast. Any time the forecast shows rain, it will count as snow during the Winter Frost Event.

How to Build Friendship with Penguins

Like all other animals in Heartopia, building friendship with penguins mostly revolves around feeding them at the Penguin Trough. Interacting with the trough lets you offer food items. While penguins will react to different foods, they prefer fish.

If you want to save time and avoid experimenting with different types of food for Penguins, you can try feeding them seafood. Penguins particularly love Sardines, Common Prawn, and False Scad. As such, feeding them these items consistently will raise your friendship level much more efficiently than random foods.

While we’ve not confirmed it yet, it is also possible that you’ll occasionally receive gifts from Penguins as you level up your bond with them.

Luckily, all of their preferred options are very easy to obtain compared to most other fish in Heartopia, which require you to level up your fishing hobby. Sardines and Common Prawn are pretty common and are available at level 1, meaning you just need to have the Fishing hobby unlocked, and you’re good to catch them. For False Scad, you just need Fishing Hobby level 2.

Since penguins are only available for a limited time during the Winter Frost Event, it is important to interact with them regularly while they are present. Penguins stay on the island for less than a month, so visiting the trough daily gives you the best chance to maximize friendship before the event ends.

heartopia-where-to-find-all-winter-birds

Where to Find All Winter Birds in Heartopia

There are a bunch of Winter Birds available during the Winter Frost Event in Heartopia.

Where to Find Common Prawn

Name	Location	Time of Day	Weather Conditions	Level Required
Common Prawn	East Sea	All Day	Sunny \| Rainy \| Snowy \| Rainbow	Level 1

Common Prawn is one of the easiest foods to obtain for penguins and is available early in the game. It can be found in the East Sea and is available throughout the entire day. Moreover, Common Prawn can be caught during Sunny, Rainy, and Rainbow weather, which makes it an easy catch for beginner players.

Where to Find Sardines

Name	Location	Time of Day	Weather Conditions	Level Required
Sardine	Ocean	All Day	Sunny \| Rainy \| Snowy \| Rainbow	Level 1

Sardines are another favorite food for penguins and can be found in the Ocean. Like Common Prawn, Sardines are available all day and can be caught during Sunny, Rainy, or Rainbow weather conditions. They also require only Level One, making them extremely beginner-friendly.

Sardines are one of the most reliable foods to stockpile before visiting the Penguin Trough.

Where to Find False Scad

Name	Location	Time of Day	Weather Conditions	Level Required
False Scad	Zephyr Sea	All Day	Sunny \| Rainy \| Snowy \| Rainbow	Level 2

False Scad requires Fishing Hobby Level 2, which makes it a little harder to find but still very manageable. It can be found in the Zephyr Sea and is available throughout the entire day under Sunny, Rainy, and Rainbow weather conditions.

You can easily upgrade your Fishing Hobby to level 2 by catching starter fish. Once the option to upgrade the hobby appears, you just need to open the Hobbies menu, select Fishing Hobby, and use Hobby Upgrade Tickets to level up your fishing hobby.

Since penguins will eventually leave Heartopia, unlocking them and building friendships while they are present is a great way to experience one of Winter Frost’s most adorable features before it disappears.