A UK wildlife park renamed a king penguin they thought was female after some confusion concerning her inability to lay eggs. After observing the penguin constantly flirting with another male penguin, staffers realized it was a gay male.
Birdland Park and Gardens in Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire, is home to the UK's only king penguin breeding colony.
In 2016, a 10-year-old king penguin named "Maggie" joined Birdland from Denmark courtesy of the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) and its breeding and conservation program, EAZA Ex-situ Programme (EEP).
The park explained that Maggie was settling in well with the other penguins in the colony, which included four other birds named Frank, 24; Seth, 39, Spike, 17, and 30-year-old Bill, the only female.
When Maggie never provided a chick after catching the attention of Frank, suspicious handlers submitted a feather sample for DNA testing, and the result showed Maggie was "definitely male."
After eight years of being misgendered, the king penguin was reintroduced as "Magnus."
You can see the announcement clip here.
Magnus was welcomed by the internet.
@birdlandpark/Instagram
@birdlandpark/Instagram
@birdlandpark/Instagram
@birdlandpark/Instagram
@birdlandpark/Instagram
It is difficult to determine a penguin's gender by the naked eye since they do not have external genitalia.
Instead, both male and female penguins, like other bird species, have an orifice called a cloaca that serves as an intestinal, urinary, and reproductive tract.
The only way to definitively tell male and female penguins apart is through examining chromosomes or internal organs through testing.
King penguins can also be accurately sexed by observing size (males are typically larger), beak length (males tend to have longer beak lengths than females), or syllable patterns in their vocalization.
People shared thoughts.
Alistair Keen, Birdland’s head-keeper, said Magnus' gender presented "another unique hurdle" in achieving success with Birdland's population management goals since Bill is the only female penguin in the colony. Incidentally, Bill was also initially misgendered, as staffers erroneously believed she was male.
@birdlandpark/Instagram
@birdlandpark/Instagram
Keen noted, “It’s fascinating, however, to have confirmed what we’ve long suspected, and we remain committed to supporting these incredible birds in every way possible."
In the hopes of improving their breeding program, Birdland is expecting a new female penguin to arrive in January 2025 from Germany.
@PreetBharara/X
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AMC