London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Sep 11, 2026

Lesbian penguin 'super moms' welcome chick at Spanish aquarium

Lesbian penguin 'super moms' welcome chick at Spanish aquarium

Same-sex penguin couple Electra and Viola adopted, incubated and raised an egg from another couple at one of Europe's largest aquariums.

A female penguin couple have become parents to a newly hatched chick at one of Europe's largest aquariums.

Penguin "super moms" Electra and Viola adopted, incubated and raised an egg from another couple at Oceanogràfic València in Valencia, Spain, according to a statement on the aquarium's website. They are one of the aquarium’s three gentoo penguin couples to welcome a chick during the current breeding season.

“Although same-sex couples are common in more than 450 species in both zoos and nature, it's the first time this has happened in our aquarium,” Oceanogràfic València stated on its Facebook page. "Welcome to the world, little one!"

It all began when penguin caregivers noticed the pair showing signs that they were ready to reproduce, like constructing a nest out of pebbles. After observing this behavior, the aquarium decided to give the couple a fertile egg to raise.



Electra and Viola are not the first same-sex penguin couple to make international headlines over the past few years.

Sphen and Magic, a gay penguin "power couple" at Sea Life Sydney Aquarium in Australia were given a second egg to foster last year after successfully fostering their first in 2018.



At Sea Life Aquarium London, longtime duo Rocky and Marama made headlines last July after adopting a chick, and then the moms made news again in September when their baby became the world’s first “genderless” penguin chick.

And in September 2018, two male penguins at a Denmark zoo nabbed a chick while its mother was swimming. The zoo staff returned the little one to its biological parents soon after, but took heed of the couple’s nurturing affect and found an egg for them to raise.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
English Councils to Gain Power to Introduce Tourist Taxes by 2028
Kemi Badenoch Reshuffles Conservative Shadow Cabinet
Firefighters Make Progress Containing Major Wildfires in South Wales
John Lewis Partnership Reports £124 Million Loss
Study Says UK AI Data Centres Will Create Only a Quarter of Forecast Jobs
UK Government Considers Higher Industrial Water Prices Amid Supply Pressures
Andy Burnham Holds First Call With Donald Trump as UK Prime Minister
NHS Records Busiest Summer on Record as Heatwaves Drive Hospital Admissions
Home Secretary Orders Police Crackdown on Far-Right Anti-Migrant Vigilantes
UK Supreme Court Rules Northern Ireland Religious Education Curriculum Breaches Human Rights Standards
Markets Price in Four Bank of England Rate Rises by Next Summer
House of Commons Prepares Free Vote on Assisted Dying Bill
UK Government Bans Trade With Israeli Settlements in Occupied Territories
UK Economy Grows 0.4% in July as Artificial Intelligence Investment Supports Expansion
Andy Burnham Becomes UK Prime Minister After Keir Starmer Resigns
John Lewis Partnership Loss Widens to £124 Million
UK Government to Put White Working-Class Social Mobility at Centre of Equality Policy
McLaren Plans £450 Million Technology Investment Creating 1,000 UK Jobs
UK Chancellor Faces Calls for Wealth Taxes and Public Ownership in Autumn Budget
English Mayors to Gain Powers to Impose Uncapped Overnight Tourist Taxes
JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon Warns UK Government Against Bank Windfall Taxes
UK Air Traffic Control Outage Cancels More Than 2,000 Flights
UK Imposes Trade Ban on Israeli Settlements in the West Bank
UK Borrowing Costs Surge as Middle East Tensions Push Long-Term Gilt Yields to Highest Since 1998
Buckingham Palace Says Prince Harry and Meghan Will Not Resume Official Royal Duties
UK Treasury Faces Calls to Scrap £100,000 Childcare Support Threshold
Trades Union Congress Urges Labour Government to Rewrite Migration Policy
Riot Police Deployed After Anti-Migrant Protests Turn Violent in Portsmouth
UK Considers Replacing Some Disability Cash Payments With Direct Services
JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon Warns UK Chancellor Against Higher Banking Taxes
UK Announces New Sanctions Targeting Israeli Settlements in West Bank
Metropolitan Police Investigate Alleged Illegal Donations to Reform UK
UK Charges Wiltshire Man With Assisting Russian Intelligence
UK Orders Urgent Review After Air Traffic Failure Cancels More Than 2,000 Flights
Merz Rebukes AfD Expansion in Saxony-Anhalt
King Charles Confirms Prince Harry and Meghan Will Remain Private Citizens
Labour Selects Former Child Refugee for By-Election in Keir Starmer’s Former Seat
Foreign Private Equity Accelerates Takeovers of London-Listed Industrial Companies
NHS Maternity Care Faces Scrutiny Over Support for Mothers After Caesarean Births
BBC Warns Staff Strikes Are Likely Amid Job Cuts and Programme Cancellations
English Housing Affordability Improves to Best Level in More Than a Decade
UK Health Commission Proposes Framework for Wider AI Adoption Across NHS
Labour Faces Pressure for Wealth Tax Ahead of Autumn Budget
Metropolitan Police Open Criminal Investigation Into Alleged Foreign Donations to Reform UK
UK Police Deploy Riot Officers After Anti-Immigration Unrest in Portsmouth and Dover
UK Defends Sanctions on Israeli Settlements Despite Diplomatic Retaliation
UK Air Traffic Control Failure Cancels More Than 1,000 Flights and Disrupts 65,000 Passengers
Compass Urges £10 Million Wealth Tax and Public Ownership Ahead of UK Autumn Budget
UK Government’s Devolution Plans Face House of Lords Scrutiny
Maldives Seeks New Chagos Sovereignty Talks With UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham
×