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LBIAN ALBATROSS AND GAY GIRAFF? THE SCIENCE ON SAME-SEX SEXUALY ANIMALS
Metal may fluence sexual velopment whe ibis, expert birds that eat mercury-ntamated food show "surprisg" homosexual behavr, scientists have a recent experiment ptive whe ibis, many of the mal exposed to the metal chose other mal as "male-male pairs did everythg that a heterosexual pair would do, " said study lear Peter Frerick, a wildlife elogist at the Universy of Florida Gaville. "(Related: "Homosexual Activy Among Animals Stirs Debate. A fourth ntrol group ate mercury-ee the birds had reached sexual matury at around a year old, homosexual bondg creased all three groups exposed to mercury.
")The blogil mechanism for how the metal homosexual actns is not totally unrstood, Frerick add. Mercury Mysteri RemaMany unknowns rema about the study and mercury's effects, Frerick team did not have fundg, for example, to exame whether takg mercury out of the birds' diets would stop the homosexual "my spicn is none of the effects we saw are likely to be permanent, " Frerick said. "There's a great tenncy to extrapolate this study an offhand fashn to mean, Oh if you eat mercury, you're gog to be gay, " he addn, the rearchers n't say for sure whether homosexual behavr occurs wild birds exposed to mercury.