Lok Yee Luk

Project: Same-sex behavior in birds

Started July 13, 2023

Abstract or project description

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are topics of growing importance and relevance in modern society, and a component of DEI that has received much attention is queer relationships. From transgender men fighting for their rights to enter the Miss Italy pageant to the debate over whether society should create a non-gender washroom, queer ecology has been a constant topic of discussion this decade. Researchers have found evidence with examples that homosexual partnerships even exist in the animal kingdom. Previous research has provided a range of explanations for this pattern, from parental care to social bonding. However, the main hypothesis focuses on when less care is given by females in socially monogamous species, which leads to higher rates of homosexual behavior. In situations where there are more opportunities for mating, homosexual behavior in birds is more likely to occur without affecting reproductive success. As a result, homosexual behavior may exist in a evolutionary neutral manner (i.e., the trait is neither deleterious or adaptive) or serves as a behavioral model that can be used in adaptive design. However, it is difficult to draw any broad conclusions from these studies due to the wide disparities in their focus. To write this review on current theories and the purposes behind these behaviors, I investigated the hypotheses for same-sex behavior in birds using findings from numerous research. Unexpectedly, there are connections between these beliefs that could help us understand nature better. My findings suggest that additional study and comprehension of the causes of these behaviors may be… Conclusion