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Zoo abandons bid to mate hyena 'couple' as both male

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Um, I can understand not being able to determine the gender of a reptile or a bird, but a mammal?

-3 ( +1 / -4 )

They couldn't reproduce, but they are sharing a meaningful committed relationship and are planning to marry.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

@scipantheist:

The zoo explained that it is “extremely difficult” to determine the sex of a spotted hyena from the appearance of its external genitalia.

from wikipedia ".......and the presence of a pseudo-penis in the female. It is the only mammalian species to lack an external vaginal opening.

Although the genitalia of the male spotted hyena is typical by mammalian standards, that of the female closely resembles that of the male; the clitoris is shaped and positioned like a penis, and is capable of erection. The female also possesses no external vagina (vaginal opening), as the labia are fused to form a pseudo-scrotum.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Nature's a mad scientist...

0 ( +2 / -2 )

"The Maruyama Zoo in Sapporo said in a statement this week that it was given the animals as a “male and female couple” in October 2010 from a zoo in the South Korean twin city of Daejon."

The South Koreans said they were male and female. Make a mark on the calendar; first time South Korea has ever made a mistake.

7 ( +7 / -0 )

If the difficulty is so well-known, SK should have used the word 'maybe'.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

I have always know that hyenas have both sexual organs.

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

Couldn't they just adopt?

5 ( +6 / -1 )

@Farmboy

Thanks for the informative link, but that's better after lunch...

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Can't they see the balls? I watched Africa wild animals' document TV show and I can see clearly male Hyenas have big balls like our domestic dogs have. They are fighting each other so they are not gay Hyenas too. Their balls must be taken out by someone if they couldn't found balls on both Hyenas.

-3 ( +0 / -3 )

Nature is a strange beast... I mean c'mon, some mammals still lay eggs!

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Kobuta Chan: Can't they see the balls?

Read next-to-last paragraph of Farmboy's link. Females have pseudo scrotum and penis. Even the zoologist authoring the article was fooled. At first thought the female under examination was male based on the apparent male genitalia (including feeling the pseudo scrotum), then several minutes noticed the nipples were larger than males' ever get, so changed estimate to pregnant female, based on the nipples.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

A psuedo scrotum... Mmm!

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Nature is seriously discriminatory. I mean what happened to inclusive and and diversity and all that?

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

They couldn't reproduce, but they are sharing a meaningful committed relationship and are planning to marry. thats natures way of removing the defective genes from animals

2 ( +2 / -0 )

What a cock-up

4 ( +5 / -1 )

What a cock-up

Or not?

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Then the couple should be allowed to adopt a baby hyena.....

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Too bad for the two male hyenas but I feel the most sorry for the spouses of the zookeepers.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

How much did this whole year program(me) cost, I wonder?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

How do the hyenas identify another hyenas sex? Smell?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

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