More Biological Exuberance
Following the feathered footsteps of penguins Silo and Roy and swans Romeo and Juliet (both female), flamingos Carlos and Fernanado are the latest same-sex avian pair to try parenthood.
According to UK Gay News, the couple had stolen eggs before in order to raise chicks. This time, staff at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust at Slimbridge in Gloucestershire gave them an egg from an abandoned nest, and encouraged them to look after it. The chick is now doing well under the care of its dads.
One researcher has said same-sex animal pairs are examples of “biological exuberance.” I say flamingos—in all their pink, feathered glory—are a perfect symbol for the upcoming, exuberant season of gay pride. Here’s to the happy family!
Filed under: Selves and Identities
[...] Well, not exactly. But given the discovery of five-foot-tall penguins that lived in prehistoric Peru, coupled with the knowledge that some penguins exhibit a certain “biological exuberance” towards members of the same sex, one can only conclude that 36 million years ago, free of today’s social mores, the giant birds once frolicked free and proud. [...]
[...] penguins, then swans and flamingos—now peacocks. A headline-making British baronet, Sir Benjamin Slade, claims his pet peacock [...]