2004-02-07 04:00:00 PDT New York -- Roy and Silo, two chinstrap
penguins at the Central Park Zoo in Manhattan, are completely
devoted to each other. For nearly six years now, they have been
inseparable. They exhibit what in penguin parlance is called
"ecstatic behavior": That is, they entwine their necks, they
vocalize to each other, they have sex. Silo and Roy are, to
anthropomorphize a bit, gay penguins. When offered female
companionship, they have adamantly refused it. And the females
aren't interested in them, either. At one time, the two seemed
so desperate to incubate an egg together that they put a rock in
their nest and sat on it, keeping it warm in the folds of their
abdomens, said their chief keeper, Rob Gramzay. Finally, he gave
them a fertile egg that needed care to hatch. Things went
perfectly, and a chick, Tango, was born. For the next 2 1/2
months they raised Tango, keeping her warm and feeding her food
from their beaks until she could go out into the world on her
own. Gramzay is full of praise