Sex and the Birds: 4a. Homosexual Red-breasted Parakeet

on 11th December 2013

“Since the report on the well-known pair of lesbian hornbills a few years ago LINK, all seems to be quiet on the local LGBT bird scene LINK.

“To spice things up a little on that front, here’s a clip of a pair of male Red-breasted Parakeets (Psittacula alexandri) in an R-rated scene at Bidadari LINK yesterday evening:

“There have been previous reports of homosexual behaviour recorded in wild birds, including Orange-fronted Parakeet (Aratinga canicularis) LINK but I have not found any online records of homosexual Red-breasted Parakeet. For information, here’s a list of birds displaying homosexual behaviour from Wikipedia LINK.

“Here’s also an interesting article which suggests that pollution may have a hand in such behaviour LINK.

“By the way, the tree in the video has been identified as an angsana (Pterocarpus indicus) by Yap Von Bing. I noticed the parakeets were plucking fresh leaves and manipulating them in their beaks before dropping them (as can be seen at the beginning of the video). Not sure why they do this.”

Lena Chow
Singapore
21st November 2013

If you like this post please tap on the Like button at the left bottom of page. Any views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors/contributors, and are not endorsed by the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM, NUS) or its affiliated institutions. Readers are encouraged to use their discretion before making any decisions or judgements based on the information presented.

YC Wee

Dr Wee played a significant role as a green advocate in Singapore through his extensive involvement in various organizations and committees: as Secretary and Chairman for the Malayan Nature Society (Singapore Branch), and with the Nature Society (Singapore) as founding President (1978-1995). He has also served in the Nature Reserve Board (1987-1989), Nature Reserves Committee (1990-1996), National Council on the Environment/Singapore Environment Council (1992-1996), Work-Group on Nature Conservation (1992) and Inter-Varsity Council on the Environment (1995-1997). He is Patron of the Singapore Gardening Society and was appointed Honorary Museum Associate of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM) in 2012. In 2005, Dr Wee started the Bird Ecology Study Group. With more than 6,000 entries, the website has become a valuable resource consulted by students, birdwatchers and researchers locally and internationally. The views and opinions expressed in this article are his own, and do not represent those of LKCNHM, the National University of Singapore or its affiliated institutions.

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