Sphen and Magic

Last updated

Sphen and Magic
Species Gentoo penguin
SexMales
HatchedSphen
(2013-08-19)August 19, 2013
Magic
(2016-08-19) August 19, 2016 (age 8)
DiedSphen
August 22, 2024(2024-08-22) (aged 11)
Sea Life Sydney Aquarium
Nation fromAustralia
Known forSame-sex animal couple
OffspringLara, Clancy (both adopted)

Sphen and Magic were two male gentoo penguins at the Sea Life Sydney Aquarium. After meeting in 2018, they adopted and raised two chicks together, becoming internationally famous and symbolic for the Australian gay rights movement. [1] Sphen died in August 2024 at the age of 11.

Contents

History

Sphen was born at SeaWorld, whereas Magic was born at the Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium three years later. [2] Magic and Sphen first met in the summer of 2018 at the Sea Life Sydney Aquarium, [2] [3] where they were part of a colony of 33 penguins. [2] They courted by bowing, bringing each other pebbles, and accepting each other's pebbles, and then by singing to each other. During mating season, aquarium managers noted that the couple had made the biggest nest and had sat on it constantly, taking turns to do so for 28 days, a significantly better result than the other penguins. [2]

The aquarium's penguin keepers made the decision that the pair should be allowed to raise a chick, and alerted leadership that this would be the case, which executives embraced. Managers gave them a dummy egg, which they successfully nursed. As a result, when a heterosexual penguin couple left an egg unattended, the workers gave the egg to Sphen and Magic. Being younger, Magic initially spent less time caring for the egg, though later learned to do so more frequently. The egg hatched on a Friday in October that year, weighing 91 grams (3.2 oz) and being the only egg to have hatched in the entire colony. [2] The chick was named Baby Sphengic, and in January 2019, the chick was revealed to be a female and renamed Lara. [4] [5]

In November 2019 it was revealed that the couple were fostering a second chick after zoo staff saw another couple struggling to incubate two eggs simultaneously. [6] This second chick was named Clancy. [5]

In 2024, following a deterioration in Sphen's health, [3] the aquarium's veterinary team euthanised him to end his discomfort and pain. [3] Zoo staff brought Magic to his side to mourn; he sang, which was echoed by the other 45 penguins in the colony. [5] [7] Sphen's death, at the age of 11, was announced on 22 August 2024; the cause of his deterioration will be investigated. [3] [5]

Impact

The year prior to the pair meeting, in 2017, same-sex marriage in Australia was legalized; [8] the penguins became a larger symbol of this. [2] The aquarium initially published videos about the penguins, including their singing and making of a pebble nest. Responses to this varied, with some commenters arguing that the word "gay" should not be used for the penguins, that they were "just friends" and that their relationship was "unnatural". [2] Some conservatives argued that the penguins were being used to promote a political agenda. [9]

The penguins inspired a float for the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade, featured in the Netflix comedy-drama series Atypical , [7] and were referenced in Australia's education syllabus. [3] Richard Dilly, the aquarium manager, noted that through the fame of the penguins the aquarium had been able to share messages concerning conservation, plastic pollution, global warming and the protection of wild penguins through fundraising initiatives. [9]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little penguin</span> Species of penguin

The little penguin is the smallest species of penguin. It originates from New Zealand. It is commonly known as the fairy penguin, little blue penguin, or blue penguin, owing to its slate-blue plumage and is also known by its Māori name kororā. It is a fossorial bird.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emperor penguin</span> Large flightless seabird endemic to Antarctica

The emperor penguin is the tallest and heaviest of all living penguin species and is endemic to Antarctica. The male and female are similar in plumage and size, reaching 100 cm (39 in) in length and weighing from 22 to 45 kg. Feathers of the head and back are black and sharply delineated from the white belly, pale-yellow breast and bright-yellow ear patches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chinstrap penguin</span> Species of penguin

The chinstrap penguin is a species of penguin that inhabits a variety of islands and shores in the Southern Pacific and the Antarctic Oceans. Its name stems from the narrow black band under its head, which makes it appear as if it were wearing a black helmet, making it easy to identify. Other common names include ringed penguin, bearded penguin, and stonecracker penguin, due to its loud, harsh call.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African penguin</span> Species of bird

The African penguin, also known as Cape penguin or South African penguin, is a species of penguin confined to southern African waters. Like all penguins, it is flightless, with a streamlined body and wings stiffened and flattened into flippers for a marine habitat. Adults weigh an average of 2.2–3.5 kg (4.9–7.7 lb) and are 60–70 cm (24–28 in) tall. The species has distinctive pink patches of skin above the eyes and a black facial mask. The body's upper parts are black and sharply delineated from the white underparts, which are spotted and marked with a black band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King penguin</span> Species of bird

The king penguin is the second largest species of penguin, smaller, but somewhat similar in appearance to the emperor penguin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shedd Aquarium</span> Aquarium in Chicago, Illinois, United States

Shedd Aquarium is an indoor public aquarium in Chicago. Opened on May 30, 1930, the 5 million US gal aquarium holds about 32,000 animals and is the third largest aquarium in the Western Hemisphere, after the Georgia Aquarium and Monterey Bay Aquarium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homosexual behavior in animals</span> Sexual behavior among non-human species that is interpreted as homosexual

Various non-human animal species exhibit behavior that can be interpreted as homosexual or bisexual, often referred to as same-sex sexual behavior (SSSB) by scientists. This may include same-sex sexual activity, courtship, affection, pair bonding, and parenting among same-sex animal pairs. Various forms of this are found among a variety of vertebrate and arthropod taxonomic classes. The sexual behavior of non-human animals takes many different forms, even within the same species, though homosexual behavior is best known from social species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macaroni penguin</span> Species of bird

The macaroni penguin is a species of penguin found from the Subantarctic to the Antarctic Peninsula. One of six species of crested penguin, it is very closely related to the royal penguin, and some authorities consider the two to be a single species. It bears a distinctive yellow crest on its forehead. Its face and upperparts are black and sharply delineated from the white underparts. Adults weigh on average 5.5 kg (12 lb) and are 70 cm (28 in) in length. The male and female are similar in appearance; the male is slightly larger and stronger with a relatively larger bill. Like all penguins, it is flightless, with a streamlined body and wings stiffened and flattened into flippers for a marine lifestyle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magellanic penguin</span> Species of bird

The Magellanic penguin is a South American penguin, breeding in coastal Patagonia, including Argentina, Chile, and the Falkland Islands, with some migrating to Brazil and Uruguay, where they are occasionally seen as far north as Espírito Santo. Vagrants have been found in El Salvador, the Avian Island in Antarctica, Australia, and New Zealand. It is the most numerous of the Spheniscus banded penguins. Its nearest relatives are the African penguin, the Humboldt penguin, and the Galápagos penguins. The Magellanic penguin was named after Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan, who spotted the birds in 1520. The species is listed as being of Least Concern by the IUCN.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snares penguin</span> Species of bird

The Snares penguin, also known as the Snares crested penguin and the Snares Islands penguin, is a penguin from New Zealand. The species breeds on the Snares Islands, a group of islands off the southern coast of the South Island. It is a yellow-crested penguin, with a size of 50–70 cm (19.5–27.5 in) and a weight of 2.5–4 kg (5.5–8.8 lb). It has dark blue-black upper parts and white underparts. It has a bright yellow eyebrow-stripe which extends over the eye to form a drooping, bushy crest. It has bare pink skin at the base of its large red-brown bill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leafy seadragon</span> Species of fish

The leafy seadragon or Glauert's seadragon, is a marine fish. It is the only member of the genus Phycodurus in the family Syngnathidae, which includes seadragons, pipefish, and seahorses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calgary Zoo</span> Zoo in Alberta, Canada

The Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo is located in Bridgeland, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, just east of the city's downtown and adjacent to the Inglewood and East Village neighborhoods. It is accessible via Calgary's C-Train light rail system, by car via Memorial Drive, and by bicycle and footpath via the Bow River pathway. A large portion of the zoo is located on St. George's Island in the Bow River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian brushturkey</span> Species of bird

The Australian brushturkey, Australian brush-turkey, or gweela, also frequently called the scrub turkey or bush turkey, is a common, widespread species of mound-building bird from the family Megapodiidae found in eastern Australia from Far North Queensland to Eurobodalla on the South Coast of New South Wales. The Australian brushturkey has also been introduced to Kangaroo Island in South Australia. It is the largest extant representative of the family Megapodiidae, and is one of three species to inhabit Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Aviary</span> Zoo in PA, United States

The National Aviary, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is the only independent indoor nonprofit aviary in the United States. It is also the country's largest aviary, and the only one accorded honorary "National" status by the United States Congress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amazon World Zoo Park</span> Zoo on the Isle of Wight, England

Amazon World Zoo Park is a medium-sized zoo located in Newchurch, on the outskirts of Sandown, Isle of Wight. It became a charity in 2024, adopting the name Amazon Rainforest Conservation Centre.

<i>And Tango Makes Three</i> 2005 childrens book by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson

And Tango Makes Three is a children's book written by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson and illustrated by Henry Cole which was published in 2005. The book tells the story of two male penguins, Roy and Silo, who create a family together. With the help of the zookeeper, Mr. Gramsay, Roy and Silo are given an egg which they help hatch. The female chick, that completes their family, is consequently named "Tango" by the zookeepers. The book was based on the true story of Roy and Silo, two male chinstrap penguins who formed a pair bond in New York's Central Park Zoo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roy and Silo</span> Homosexual penguin couple

Roy and Silo were two male chinstrap penguins in New York City's Central Park Zoo. They were noted by staff at the zoo in 1998 to be performing mating rituals, and one of them in 1999 attempted to hatch a rock as if it were an egg. This inspired zoo keepers to give them an egg from a pair of penguins, which could not hatch it, resulting in both of them raising a chick that was named Tango.

<i>Eudyptula novaehollandiae</i> Species of penguin

The Australian little penguin, also called the fairy penguin, little blue penguin, or blue penguin, is a species of penguin from Australia and the Otago region of New Zealand. The species was described as Spheniscusnovaehollandiae in 1826. It was later reclassified as Eudyptulaminornovaehollandiae, a subspecies of the little penguin. After a 2016 study, Eudyptula novaehollandiae was again recognised as a distinct species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tokyo Sea Life Park</span> Public aquarium in Edogawa Ward, Tokyo

Tokyo Sea Life Park is a public aquarium located in Kasai Rinkai Park, Edogawa Ward, Tokyo. Its predecessor was the Ueno Aquarium in the Ueno Zoo. The building was designed by Yoshio Taniguchi. The aquarium is accredited as a museum-equivalent facility under the Museum Act of the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pesto (penguin)</span> King penguin from Australia (born 2024)

Pesto is a king penguin chick living in Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium who gained notability in September 2024 due to his exceptionally large size during his infancy.

References

  1. ↑ Bowles, Nellie (24 January 2019). "The story of Australia's famous gay penguin couple". The Independent . Archived from the original on 22 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Bowles, Nellie (15 January 2019). "The Gay Penguins of Australia". The New York Times . ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on 22 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Sphen the penguin, one half of gay 'power couple', dies age 11". BBC News . 22 August 2024. Archived from the original on 26 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  4. ↑ Wong, Maggie Hiufu; Street, Francesca (20 January 2019). "Gender of penguin raised by same-sex parents revealed". CNN . Archived from the original on 22 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Press (21 August 2024). "When globally famous gay penguin Sphen died in Sydney, his partner began to sing". The Guardian . ISSN   0261-3077. Archived from the original on 26 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  6. ↑ Sopelsa, Brooke (6 November 2019). "Gay penguin 'power couple' fostering second egg at Sydney aquarium". NBC News . Archived from the original on 22 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  7. 1 2 Jackson, Lewis (22 August 2024). "Gay penguin Sphen dies in Sydney, leaving behind partner Magic". Reuters . Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  8. ↑ Karp, Paul (7 December 2017). "Marriage equality law passes Australia's parliament in landslide vote". The Guardian . ISSN   0261-3077. Archived from the original on 20 May 2019. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  9. 1 2 "Gay penguin Sphen dies in Australian aquarium". Deutsche Welle . 22 August 2024. Archived from the original on 22 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.