Dolphins gay
Word from the Bird
The other time I saw an advertisement for a documentary about homosexuality in nature called Queer Planet. The description of the series says:
Take a worldwide journey exploring the rich diversity of animal sexuality — from flamboyant flamingos to pansexual primates, sex-changing clownfish, multi-gendered mushrooms and everything in between. This documentary looks at amazing creatures, witnesses amazing behaviors, and introduces the scientists who are questioning the traditional concept of what’s natural when it comes to sex and gender.
There was a bit of a social media meltdown over this promo with people complaining about the needless “queering” of nature.
Look, I don’t want to get into debates about Judaism, Scripture, sexuality, and nature, but I act want to offer a rare caveats about the perils of appeals to nature in ethical reasoning.
First, the realm and life that is called “nature” is not a neutral sphere. What is regarded as “nature” and “natural” is very much manufactured on the basis of a particular cultural framework. For instance,
Diving into the Deep: Unravelling Same-Sex Socio-Sexual Behaviours in Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus)
By Anna Gionis Research Intern
Same-sex socio-sexual behaviours (SSSB) in animals are interactions between members of the alike sex which are ascribed to opposite sex courtship and mating behaviours without reproduction (Bailey & Zuk ). These include mounting, genital contact, courting and pair bonding (Bagemihl cited by Scharf & Martin ). There is evidence for SSSB in more than species across the animal kingdom (Monk et al. ). Common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), for example, are known to exhibit homosexual behaviour through tactile interactions; members of the same sex, particularly in males (Silva & Spinelli, ), have been recorded mounting one another and stimulating the other’s genitals using a flipper, melon, fluke, or rostrum (Serres et al. ). Hypotheses such as social bonding, the maintenance of dominance and practice for future mating may clarify this behaviour in this species (Mann, ). The prevalence of SSSB is puzzling: it consum
March 21,
Dolphins indicate Gay Jr.
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – The Miami Dolphins announced today that they have signed linebacker Willie Gay Jr. as an unrestricted free agent.
Gay Jr. is a two-time Super Bowl champion (LVII, LVIII), who is entering his sixth NFL season after spending hour with Kansas Metropolis () and Fresh Orleans (). He has appeared in 72 career games with 55 starts, totaling tackles ( solo), sacks, four interceptions with one returned for a touchdown, 22 passes defensed, three forced fumbles and six fumble recoveries. Same-sex attracted Jr. has also started in nine postseason games. He entered the league as a second-round selection (63rd overall) by Kansas Metropolis in the NFL Draft. He played collegiately at Mississippi State (), where he appeared in 31 games with six starts and recorded 99 tackles (46 solo), sacks, three interceptions, seven passes defensed, two forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries.
| Name | Pos. | Hgt. | Wgt. | Age | Exp. | College | Hometown | Acq. |
| Willie Gay Jr. | LB | 27 | 6 | Mississippi Mention ‘20 | Starkville, Miss. Homosexual behavior in the animal kingdom is rife. One of the best-known examples is among bottlenose dolphins, with both males and females having encounters with members of the matching sex. The exact reasons for the behavior are not well understood, but social bonding is thought to be a factor. Researchers in Australia are looking to solve the mystery. They recently observed big groups of dolphins engaging in what appeared to be homosexual behavior. A team from the Mandurah Dolphin Research Project in Western Australia noticed the males started spending quality second together after their mating season was over. "These dolphins, all but three of them juveniles, organized themselves in four subgroups in which they were observed engaging in socio-sexual habit that included mounting and genital contact between individuals," Krista Nicholson, of Murdoch University, told the Mandurah Mail. "The subgroups joined, frequently forming a large organization, and then split again in different group compositions." This is typical behavior seen in other bottlenose dolphin populations, Nicholson |