Bruce Bagemihl - Biological Exuberance

When a female Lovebird does consent to mate, nonreproductive REVERSE mounts may occur: as a part of courtship, males sometimes solicit females, who briefly mount them the way a male would. Other forms of nonprocreative sexual behavior also take place. Both Lovebirds and Galahs form pair-bonds as juveniles, long before they begin to reproduce—Galahs, in fact, may commence pairing and copulation up to three years before they can breed. In addition, some of the mating activity among younger Galahs involves birds mounting and thrusting against their partner’s head rather than the genital region. Among adults, at least 12 percent of all copulations occur well before fertilization is possible (four to five weeks prior to egg laying).

Homosexual pairs occur in several Parrot species related to these, including Masked Lovebirds ( Agapornis personata ) and Red-faced Lovebirds ( Agapornis pullaria ) , from Africa, and female Aztec Parakeets ( Aratinga astec ), from central America. Same-sex pairs (both male and female) have also been documented in numerous other species of Parrots (usually in captivity). Canary-winged Parakeets ( Brotogeris versicolurus ) and Rose-ringed Parakeets ( Psittacula krameri ) in homosexual pairs engage in frequent mutual preening and soft grasping and nibbling of each other’s beak. Female pairs of Elegant Parrots ( Neophema elegans ) from Australia courtship-feed and mount one another, as do male pairs of Senegal Parrots ( Poicephalus senegalus ) and White-fronted Amazon Parrots ( Amazona albifrons ). Male pairs have also been reported in Mealy Amazon Parrots ( Amazona farinosa ). Homosexual pairing is found as well in Ornate Lorikeets ( Trichoglossus ornatus ) and several other species of Lories from the islands of Southeast Asia, in which courtship-feeding and copulation are regular features of same-sex pairing. One male pair of Yellow-backed (Chattering) Lorikeets ( Lorius garrulus flavopalliatus ) remained together for more than 14 years.

*asterisked references discuss homosexuality/transgender

Arrowood, P. C. (1991) “Male-Male, Female-Female, and Male-Female Interactions Within Captive Canary-winged Parakeet Brotogeris v. versicolurus Flocks.” Acta XX Congressus Internationalis Ornithologici, Christchurch, New Zealand (Proceedings of the 20th International Ornithological Congress), vol. 2, pp. 666–72. Wellington, N.Z.: New Zealand Ornithological Trust Board.

*———(1988) “Duetting, Pair Bonding, and Agonistic Display in Parakeet Pairs.” Behavior 106:129–57.

*Buchanan, O. M. (1966) “Homosexual Behavior in Wild Orange-fronted Parakeets.” Condor 68:399–400.

*Callaghan, E. (1982) “Breeding the Senegal Parrot Poicephalus senegalus.” Avicultural Magazine 88:130–34.

*Clarke, P. (1982) “Breeding the Spectacled (White-fronted) Amazon Parrot Amazona albifrons nana.” Avicultural Magazine 88:71–74.

*Dilger, W. C. (1960) “The Comparative Ethology of the African Parrot Genus Agapornis.” Zeitschrift für Tierpsychologie 17:649–85.

*Fischdick, G., V. Hahn, and K. Immelmann (1984) “Die Sozialisation beim Rosenkopfchen Agapornis roseicollis [Socialization in the Peach-faced Lovebird].” Journal für Ornithologie 125:307–19.

Forshaw, J. M. (1989) Parrots of the World. 3rd ed. London: Blandford Press.

*Goodwin, D. (1983) “Notes on Feral Rose-ringed Parakeets.” Avicultural Magazine 89:84–93.

*Hampe, H. (1940) “Beobachtungen bei Schmuck- und Feinsittichen, Neophema elegans und chrysostomus [Observations on Blue-winged and Elegant Parrots].” Journal für Ornithologie 88:587-99.

*Hardy, J. W. (1966) “Physical and Behavioral Factors in Sociality and Evolution of Certain Parrots (Aratinga).” Auk 83:66–83.

*———(1965) “Flock Social Behavior of the Orange-fronted Parakeet.” Condor 67:140–56.

*———(1963) “Epigamic and Reproductive Behavior of the Orange-fronted Parakeet.” Condor 65:169–99.

*Kavanau, J. L. (1987) Lovebirds, Cockatiels, Budgerigars: Behavior and Evolution. Los Angeles: Science Software Systems.

*Lack, D. (1940) “Courtship Feeding in Birds.” Auk 57:169–78.

*Lantermann, W. (1990) “Breeding the Mealy Amazon Parrot Amazona farinosa farinosa (Boddaert) at Oberhausen Ornithological Institute, West Germany.” Avicultural Magazine 96:126–29.

*Low, R. (1977) Lories and Lorikeets: The Brush-Tongued Parrots. London: Paul Elek.

Pidgeon, R. (1981) “Calls of the Galah Cacatua roseicapilla and Some Comparisons with Four Other Species of Australian Parrots.” Emu 81:158–68.

*Rogers, L. J., and H. McCulloch (1981) “Pair-bonding in the Galah Cacatua roseicapilla.” Bird Behavior 3:80–92.

*Rowley, I. (1990) Behavioral Ecology of the Galah Eolophus roseicapillus in the Wheatbelt of Western Australia. Chipping Norton, NSW: Surrey Beatty.

This project has been a labor of love, one that would not have been possible without the participation and contributions of numerous individuals and organizations. I owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to the many people who helped bring this book to life.

I am especially grateful to all the zoologists, wildlife biologists, natural history photographers, and zoo biologists who generously provided (often previously unpublished) information, data, and/or original photographs in response to my inquiries regarding various species (any errors in fact or interpretation, however, remain solely my responsibility): Arthur A. Allen/David G. Allen (Bird Photographs, New i Geese; John J. Craighead/John W. Craighead (Craighead Wildlife-Wildlands Institute, Montana)—Grizzly Bears; James D. Darling (West Coast Whale Research Foundation, Canada)—Gray Whales; Bruno J. Ens (Institute of Forestry and Nature Research [IBN-DLO], Netherlands)—Oystercatchers; Ron Entius (Artis Zoo, Netherlands)—Flamingos; J. Bristol Foster (Sierra Club of British Columbia)—Giraffes; Clifford B. Frith (Frith & Frith Books, Australia)—Birds of Paradise; Masahiro Fujioka (Applied Ornithology Laboratory, National Agricultural Research Center, Japan)—Egrets; Michio Fukuda (Tokyo Sea Life Park)—Great Cormorants; Valerius Geist (University of Calgary)—Bighorn Sheep; Jeremy Hatch (University of Massachusetts)—Roseate Terns; Dik Heg (University of Groningen, Netherlands)—Oystercatchers; Denise L. Herzing (Wild Dolphin Project/Florida Atlantic University)—Bottlenose/Atlantic Spotted Dolphins; Katherine A. Houpt (New York State College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University)—Przewalski’s Horses; George L. Hunt Jr. (University of California—Irvine)—Western Gulls; Alan R. Johnson (Station Biologique de la Tour du Valat, France)—Flamingos; Catherine E. King (Rotterdam Zoo, Netherlands) —Flamingos; Tamaki Kitagawa (Ichikawa High School, Japan)—Black-winged Stilts; Walter D. Koenig (Hastings Natural History Reservation/UC-Berkeley) —Acorn Woodpeckers; Adriaan Kortlandt (United Kingdom)—Great Cormorants; James N. Layne (Archbold Biological Station, Florida)—Botos; Michael P. Lombardo (Grand Valley State University, Michigan)—Tree Swallows; Dale F. Lott (University of California—Davis)—American Bison; Stephen G. Maka (Wildlife/ Environmental Photography, Massachusetts)—Giraffes; Michael Martys (Alpenzoo Innsbruck)—Greylag Geese; Donald B. Miles (Ohio University/University of Washington)—Whiptail Lizard identification; Gus Mills (Hyena Specialist Group, Kruger National Park, South Africa)—Spotted Hyenas; Daniel K. Niven (Smithsonian Environmental Research Unit/Illinois Natural History Survey)—Hooded Warblers; Jenny Norman (Macquarie University, Australia)—Eastern Gray Kangaroos; Yoshiaki Obara (Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology)—Cabbage White Butterflies, UV perception; David Powell (University of Maryland)—Flamingos; Mitch Reardon (Photo Researchers, New York/Okapia Bild-Archiv, Germany)—African Elephants; Juan C. Reboreda (Universidad de Buenos Aires)—Greater Rheas; Caitlin Reed (University of North Carolina/Cambridge University) —Crested Black Macaques; H. D. Rijksen (Institute of Forestry and Nature Research [IBN-DLO]/Golden Ark Foundation, Netherlands)—Orang-utans; Leonard Lee Rue III/Len Rue Jr. (Leonard Rue Enterprises, New Jersey)—White-tailed Deer, Bighorn Sheep; Susan Savage-Rumbaugh (Language Research Center, Georgia State University)—Bonobos; Carolien J. Scholten (Emmen Zoo, Netherlands)—Humboldt Penguins; John W. Scott/John P. Scott (Bowling Green State University, Ohio)—Sage Grouse; Paul E. Simonds (University of Oregon)—Bonnet Macaques; L. H. Smith (Australia)—Superb Lyrebirds; Judie Steenberg (Woodland Park Zoological Gardens, Washington)—Tree Kangaroos; Elizabeth Stevens (Zoo Atlanta/Disney World Animal Programs)—Flamingos; Yukimaru Sugiyama (Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University)—Bonnet Macaques; Angelika Tipler-Schlager (Austria)—Greylag Geese; Pepper W. Trail (Oregon)—Guianan Cock-of-the-Rock; Paul L. Vasey (Université de Montréal)—Japanese Macaques, other species; Frans B. M. de Waal (Emory University/Yerkes Regional Primate Research Center, Georgia)—Bonobos; Juichi Yamagiwa (Kyoto University)—Gorillas. Thanks also to the photo archives of Yellowstone National Park and the American Museum of Natural History for supplying images, and to the many publishers, journal editors, and scientists for permission to reprint previously published photographs (see photo credits on pp. 733–735).