Same-sex flamingo pair Freddie Mercury and Lance Bass have split up after years together at the Denver Zoo.
The zoo reported the break up and said their break was amicable.
“Mating for life isn’t necessarily true for all birds, and our keepers have noticed that some birds in long-term relationships sometimes decide to move on and pair up with other birds,” the zoo said in a social media post.
Freddie re-paired with Iommi, one of the zoo’s 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.
Flamingos are incredibly social animals that form unique and intricate bonds. Some birds are in male-female breeding pairs. Some birds are in same-sex bonded pairs. Some birds are mated pairs their whole lives, some will have multiple partners in their lifetime and others won’t have a mate at all.
The zoo said it allows its flocks to choose whoever they want to form associations with at any time.
We’re happy to celebrate their pairings this month and every month. Happy #Pride!
