Sven, the gay penguin at Sydney Zoo, has died. In ‘The Funeral’ his beloved charmer sings a farewell song. The pair of birds have become a symbol of gay rights at the vibrant zoo

The gay penguin who became a symbol of gay rights has died. His partner sang a farewell song at the “funeral”, attended by all the straight members of his species. It happened at Sydney Zoo, but the news, re-released by the BBC in London, spread around the world: because the love between two male specimens of the Coryphaeus spp., as they are scientifically called, had for some time attracted the attention of the international media and public opinion.

ShipThe 11-year-old, who was named after him by the city’s aquarium, died in recent days after his health deteriorated. He gained worldwide fame in 2018, when aquarium staff noticed he had paired up with charmanother male penguin. Staff noticed an attraction between the two by seeing them repeatedly bow to each other, a sign of courtship between penguins. Since then, they have never left each other, and a few years later, zoo naturalists gave them two penguin cubs for adoption, which the same-sex parents lovingly raised.

Antarctic penguins live on average up to 12-13 years and are monogamous, keeping the same pair throughout their reproductive period. Ship and magic They stayed together for six years. Upon his death, Shipwhich was euthanized to end the suffering caused by the disease, Magic was taken to see his partner’s body. “She immediately started making sounds, it sounded like a song,” according to staff, “which was then joined by the entire penguin community at the aquarium,” including their two adopted children, Lara and Clancy.

The same-sex love between Sphen and Magic inspired a Mardi Gras float, was included in school curricula in Australia and ended up in a Netflix series. In a statement announcing his death, Sydney’s Sea Life Aquarium said the gay penguin had “an immeasurable impact on the world as a symbol of equality and a conduit for the cause of conservation.” Richard Seeley, the aquarium’s director, called him “an icon to be celebrated.” The aquarium’s website and website have received numerous messages of condolence from the public: “You taught us so much,” wrote Mark, a longtime fan. “You will never be forgotten.”