the western gull is just one of many birds known to display same-sex pairing behavior. however, it had previously been unclear if one partner in female-female pairings took on a typically ‘masculine’ role and the other took on a ‘feminine’ role, regardless of sex. it had been hypothesized that these pairings were the result of one gull adopting a typically masculine role. researchers found that regardless of same-sex pairings, the gulls behaved identically to members of their sex in opposite-sex pairings. additionally, up to 14 percent of 1,200 seagulls in the survey were in same-sex pairings.
