DENVER (KDVR) — The Denver Zoo says it may have “ruffled some feathers” after putting a Pride post on Facebook that might have left some wandering why a same-sex flamingo pair would break up.
The zoo said it has 75 flamingos in its flock and they have the ability to form relationships with multiple birds during their lifetime.
Original post on Facebook
Here’s a look at the original post:
“Happy Pride! We’re celebrating some of the diverse animal kingdom families who call the Zoo home, and today we’re featuring our fabulous flockstars, our Chilean and American flamingos! Flamingos are extremely social by nature and flocks consist of collections of partnerships. This includes not only male-female breeding pairs, but also strong bonds between same-sex pairs. While our famed, same-sex couple Chilean flamingo Lance Bass and American flamingo Freddie Mercury are no longer a pair, they were paired up for several years and acted as surrogate parents if a breeding pair was unable to raise their chick. Our flock is 75 birds strong, which allows our birds to flamingle with a variety of individuals and personalities, giving them many options on who to form associations with.”
Denver Zoo
Follow up post on Facebook
The Denver Zoo shared a follow up post to shed some light on why they believe Freddie and Lance split up.
“It seems like our flamingo post yesterday may have ruffled some feathers and we want to sincerely apologize…for leaving everyone in the dark so long as to why our same-sex flamingo pair Freddie Mercury and Lance Bass split up!” Denver Zoo said on Facebook.
The zoo said flamingos don’t always mate for life, and some choose to pair up with other birds.
“Freddie repaired with Iommi, one of our fourteen-year-old female American flamingos. Iommi has been around Freddie for nearly her entire life without any indication of a bond before, so keepers aren’t exactly sure why these two decided to pair up. As for Lance, keepers haven’t noticed him in a new concrete bond with anyone else at the moment,” the zoo shared.
“Our flock allows our birds to choose who they decide to form associations with and we’re happy to celebrate their pairings this month and every month. Happy Pride!” the zoo posted.
Reaction to the Facebook post
The original post received nearly 1,000 comments, mostly about why and how a flamingo pair would break up.
“They broke up?!? Why? How does that even work?!? I have so many questions!” Brittany posted.
“We all need answers….why aren’t they together anymore??? What are they doing now? Are they alright? How you gonna just nonchalantly say they are no longer a pair without some explanation for us all? Sooooo curious.” Mandy posted.
“I love that they are Lance and Freddie. They are beautiful. Sad they are no longer together. Why? I need more information please.” Diana said.
Visiting the zoo
If you’re planning a trip to the zoo to see the flamingos, it is open daily at 10 a.m. for the general public and 8:30 a.m. for members. The zoo said closing hours may vary by day, but generally one hour and 30 minutes after the last ticket entry time.
