Two Male Penguins in a Gay relation ship Will be Split up

Two male penguins at Toronto Zoo, that are thought to be in a gay relationship, are set to be split up in the coming weeks as part of the zoo’s breeding programme.

Jonny Payne http://news.pinkpaper.com

Two male penguins at Toronto Zoo, that are thought to be in a gay relationship, are set to be split up in the coming weeks as part of the zoo’s breeding programme.

Buddy and Pedro have been showing signs of mating behaviour, but their relationship is set to come to an end as the pair will soon be introduced to females for mating. Their species, the African penguin, is endangered, with less than a quarter of a million individuals left, and the zoo aims to increase its own numbers.

The pair arrived at the zoo in May from Toledo, where they both were part of the same group of males, and their relationship has blossomed since they arrived in the Canadian city, officials have said.

Speaking of Buddy and Pedro’s relationship, one zookeeper told the Toronto Star: “They do courtship and mating behaviours that females and males would do.”

Joe Torzsok, chair of the Toronto Zoo board added: “It’s a complicated issue, but they seem to be in a loving relationship of some sort.”

Gay penguin couples have also been seen in zoos in Japan, Germany, Orlando and New York - where chinstrap penguins Roy and Silo raised a chick together after incubating an egg in Central Zoo - the Toronto Star reports.