Birds of a Feather
An item I discovered in the 4/20 edition of NY Newsday: “After producing eggs for eight months, a hen in Saltford, England, has turned into a rooster–sprouting a scarlet comb, crowing at dawn, fighting with other males, and even trying to mate with former laying mates. “One morning out of the blue she just started crowing. I’ve never heard of such a thing,” said the astonished owner.
Found on 4/25 andrewsullivan.com – the “Very Pink Flamingos” of Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, Slimbridge, U.K.: “Carlos and Fernando have been together now for five years and seem perfectly happy. Both of them take on the male roles during the courtship ritual which involves preening, strutting and waving their heads vigorously from side to side. Their parental instincts are also very strong, prompting them to raid the nests of other couples in the flock. They are both large adult males so as a partnership they are quite formidable and are afforded more respect from the other birds. They are also very good parents and behave just as the heterosexual birds do when rearing their young.” For the first 3 or 4 weeks young flamingos are fed on crop milk, a pink nutritious liquid produced by both parents, so Carlos and Fernando have no problem feeding their adopted young and have so far raised three chicks.
(Note to self: Is there a link between my lesbianism and English ancestry?)
