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Gayly ever after
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Three `gay' penguins in Germany provoke a debate on animal sexuality and human understanding of it
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Homosexuality is not understood because those studying it have often been heterosexual, monogamous males ELAVARTHI MANOHAR, SANGAMA
Photo: AFP
FLOCKING TOGETHER Some theorists explain homosexuality in animals as playful behaviour, a way of showing affection, a way to assert dominance or the result of a stressful situation and so on
Recently, the Bremerhaven zoo in Northern Germany found itself in unfamiliar territory. Its six resident Humboldt penguins appeared to have been mating and acting as three heterosexual pairs, but when years passed and no baby penguins emerged, puzzled authorities investigated, only to discover the birds had been warming little rocks, not eggs, and were, in fact, three sets of male penguins.
Since Humboldt penguins are a rare species, the zoo arranged to fly in two female penguins to jump-start reproduction. But gay rights groups would have none of it. Rights group HOSI, representing thousands of members in Austria, Germany and Switzerland, said in a statement: "We deeply resent the attempts to interfere in the natural homosexual instincts of these penguins that are obviously happy in their same-sex partnerships. We urge any further attempts to break up these happy couples to be abandoned."
Zoo authorities quickly backed down, with Director Heike Kueck admitting: "We don't know if the three male pairs are really gay or just got together because of lack of females," but also carefully clarifying that, "Nobody here is trying to break up same sex pairs by force."
Which left the three "gay" couples alone; the heterosexual female penguins getting additional new males flown in to satisfy them; and the rest of us with some fundamental questions. Such as: can animals be naturally gay? Do human beings tend to force their sensibilities, preoccupations and politics on animals?
Precedents
We asked some Bangaloreans what they made of the issue. Anindya Sinha, Fellow at the National Institute of Advanced Sciences who has been working with primates for 12 to 13 years, says he has seen homosexual behaviour among the common monkey in the wild in two cases, spread over a period of time. "But I have never seen long-term relationships," he admits, with the exception of bonobos, a species genetically related to chimpanzees, that are among the few mammals he has heard of that use sex for non-procreational purposes. And it's easy to see why homosexuality might actually be a human preserve and therefore unnatural in these penguins.
"In all species, natural selection will select against homosexuality," explains Sinha. It's different with humans who will marry the other species (for various reasons, including cultural) to procreate or even adopt kids. But with animals, homosexuality might be considered a dead end for procreation.
Which is why, explains Vidyanand Nanjundiah, Chairman of the Biological Sciences Department at the Indian Institute Science, some theorists explain homosexuality in animals as playful behaviour, a way of showing affection, a way to assert dominance or the result of a stressful situation and so on.
But Elavarthi Manohar of Sangama, a minority rights organisation, asserts that is enough evidence to show sexuality amongst animals is diverse. "It's not understood because the people studying it have often been heterosexual, monogamous males; but animals are as diverse as humans." Homosexuality cannot be equated, says Manohar, since animals and humans fall into completely different categories. Besides, how do gay rights activists ascertain whether the penguins are not, in fact, bisexual? Or might change their preferences? "It's too simplistic to equate sexuality; to find an inclusive definition of homosexuality is hard enough even between say, Germans and Indians. Doing it cross-species is even more problematic," he avers.
Some ornithologists and rights activists suggest that the penguins may have acted in a way unnatural to their species either because of a lack of female penguins or because of the artificial conditions they were subjected to in the zoo.
"I think what the zoo authorities were trying to do was sensible," says ornithologist M.B. Krishna. "In zoos, animals are under surveillance; they don't get the same privacy as in nature, instead they are exposed and displayed. Many birds do not have external genitalia and may not be aware of the sex of another since the natural ways in which they would have distinguished between the sexes could be distorted and muted in the artificial living conditions present in zoos."
Poorva Joshipura of PETA (People for Ethical Treatment to Animals) also stresses on the usually low quality of life in zoos. "Animals require a decent quality of life and companionship. But zoos restrict animals' social behaviour and make them do `unnatural' things, like for instance, a lizard in a glass cage might get fixated on getting out and scratch the glass so much as to leave actual marks," she points out.
Mutation
A mutation in their genes could also lead animals to behave in certain ways. Prof. Nanjundiah cites a study by R.P. Sharma in Delhi, on an "extraordinary mutation" in the fruit fly, in which males started exhibiting homosexual behaviour but only if they were exposed to intense light. "I find it fascinating," he says, "because it shows that behaviour depends on both the genetic make up and the environment."
There have been other cases of gay penguins, but again this was recorded at a zoo — in New York's Central Park. It might be tempting to rush to the defence of one or the other side in this case, but Prof. Sinha warns against adopting a one-size-fits-all solution. It's important to be sensitive to animals but also not impose our sensibilities on them, he cautions. "There is no unique one way in which to handle situations involving relationships," he points out, adding that this applies, after all, to humans too.
"We should go back to the wild and study the penguins, and if this is true behaviour then we should not disturb them."
What began as a story about an unusual incident concerning three penguins grew to embrace areas of human understanding of animals, behaviour, definitions and perceptions of homosexuality and zoo conditions. Bremerhaven may have settled down after the furore it caused, but it's left behind some fundamental questions of animal conditions and protection for posterity.
HEMANGINI GUPTA
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