This One's for Keeps!

The penguin bride and bridegroom are dressed up for their "wedding ceremony" at East Lake Ocean World Park in Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 21, 2009. A couple of penguines in oestrus got married amid the blessing of raisers and tourists on Wednesday.

The groom, called Little Brat, and his bride, Little Beauty, were dressed up by aquarium staff for the ceremony. The groom wore a tie and the bride was dressed in a red blouse as they stepped into their icy wedding room to the music of the Wedding March.

For their reception, the love birds enjoyed their favourite dish - spring fish.

(Xinhua/Wang Zhenwu)

Pictures courtesy of People Online @
http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90783/91360/6578994.html

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Now for the real story behind the story:

Two gay penguins have been given a wedding ceremony as a reward for their exceptional parenting skills.

The inseparable couple at China's Polarland Zoo were originally shunned for stealing chick eggs from fellow "heterosexual" penguins but have proved their nurturing skills with abandoned eggs, The Sun has reported.

"We decided to give them two eggs from another couple whose hatching ability had been poor and they’ve turned out to be the best parents in the whole zoo," a keeper from the Harbin zoo was quoted as saying.

"They have been a good couple and deserved their reward."

Their reward was a lavish wedding ceremony — complete with a soundtrack of the 'Wedding March' and a banquet of spring fish.

One was dressed in a tie while the other sported a red jacket.

The happy couple is not the first to defy penguins' tradition of lifelong "straight" partnerships.

A pair of chinstrap penguins at New York's Central Park Zoo made headlines in 2004 for their "ecstatic behavior" including entwining their necks, singing to each other and having sex.

Silo and Roy were devoted to each other for six years, even trying to incubate a rock by sitting on it.

When zookeepers gave them a real egg to look after they successfully raised a female chick, Tango.

Story courtesy of MSN Nine in Australia @
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/733873/gay-penguins-celebrate-fatherhood-wedding