gay penguins rear adopted chick.

Goodshape

altogether now.... awwww...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8081829.stm

Boston

Any else think they should have allowed them to reintroduce females?

Tricity Bendix

This is much better for our rep than that embarassing gay flamingo story.

Goodshape

Boston wrote: »

Any else think they should have allowed them to reintroduce females?

Yes.

Reflector

Boston wrote: »

Any else think they should have allowed them to reintroduce females?

Well yeah, would be interesting to see if they would break the gay couplings for a heterosexual coupling. Sure whats the big fuss, there are gay penguins, just because the zoo introduces females doesn't make it less so.

Stark

Boston wrote: »

Any else think they should have allowed them to reintroduce females?

Let me check the homosexual agenda... Nope, no plans to do so. For the record I think introducing me to females would be a violation of my rights, them tempting me away from my lifestyle choice with their hair and their curves and all.</facetious>

In all seriousness, yes. I think that whole activist protest was ridiculous. Forcefully depriving the penguins of contact with females is interfering with their behaviour.

KnifeWRENCH

Yeah I agree that they should have let them introduce females, especially if the species is endangered. Plus who's to say those penguins aren't bisexual?

The_Minister

Reflector wrote: »

Well yeah, would be interesting to see if they would break the gay couplings for a heterosexual coupling. Sure whats the big fuss, there are gay penguins, just because the zoo introduces females doesn't make it less so.

The 'original' gay penguin couple actually split up a while back, and one of them is now with a woman.

I think depriving them of female contact, and then saying "Wow, penguins are gay" is like saying that prisons represent homosexuality, rather than just a lack of other options.

Ambersky

Here is another account of the same story

http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2009/06/05/gay-penguins-adopt005.html

And here is another account of a homosexual pairing in China.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1094977/Gay-penguins-expelled-zoo-colony-stealing-eggs-given-look-following-animal-rights-protest.html


Most animals pairings last only one season and finish on the raising of the young.
A partnership that lasts for that length of time is considered successful.

It appears that some of the heterosexuals who produce young are not always capable of raising their offspring for whatever reason.
It was a heterosexual pairing that rejected and repeatedly pushed away the egg in the first place.
A homosexual couple is capable of raising young successfully in nature and it is not just a human "abberation"

Sexual activity does not always stop for all species on reproduction and homosexual and heterosexual activity can be observed out of season.
Neither heterosexual sex nor homosexual sex is limited to reproductive purposes only.
The desire to raise young does not seem to be totaly dependent on being able to reproduce yourself and pass on your own genes.
Humans and animals seem to be willing to raise the young of others unable or unwilling to raise their own.

Homosexual activity among animals does not seem to depend on the availability of partners of the opposite sex, it happens anyway.

One reason people get so excited about this story is because it puts paid to the notion that homosexuality is not "natural".
Heterosexual observers have tended to edit out or dismiss homosexual behaviours exibited in the wild.
And yes we do realise that if all animals were gay or prefered homosexual sex we would have no more reproduction of species.
Recognising homosexual behaviour as a part of nature does not mean everyone and everything is going to turn gay.
After all heterosexuality cant be that bad can it?