In another example of how much more progressive Europe is than the US, the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust in Slimbridge, Gloucestershire (i.e. Brittania) has entrusted the care of an orphaned flamingo chick to gay parents. Carlos and Fernando, the only gays in the sanctuary, have been egg-nappers in the past. On more than one occasion, the flamboyant pair have chased other nesting couples away to hatch the other birds' eggs as their own. Because bonding with the chick is vital, the zookeepers put the chick back into a fake egg, which they then placed in the partners' nest.
He looks just like dad... Greater Flamingo, Phoenicopterus roseus
The sanctuary's spokeswoman, Jane Waghorn, explained "They have really bonded with the chick and are very good at being protective parents - finally to one of their own. Flamingos raise their young in groups and the couple are acting just like the other proud parents by watching out for others' young as well as their own." Just like their heterosexual neighbors, Carlos and Fernando perform an elaborate courtship dance twice a year.
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