CBC releases “Animal Pride” documentary on “incredibly queer” racoons, mushrooms

Canada’s national broadcaster released a documentary attempting to prove that nature is “queer.”

Canada’s national broadcaster released a documentary attempting to prove that nature is “queer.”

The CBC released a nearly one-hour episode of The Nature of Things titled “Animal Pride”, highlighting several animals and plants that they claim exhibit “queer behaviour”, seeking to oppose the belief that homosexuality is unnatural.

The documentary follows Connel Bradwell, a wildlife biologist who describes himself as “very gay,” who claims that while he was studying orcas, he observed same-sex behaviour between two males.

Bradwell joins Jaylen Bastos, an urban ecologist and a drag queen who goes by the name of Batty Banks. Bastos goes on to explain that certain kinds of mushrooms have been discovered to have tens of thousands of genders, making them “incredibly queer.”

Bastos also claims that more than 94 species of bird are queer, raising the example of Canada geese who he contends engage in same-sex parenting, pair-bonding, and sexual behaviour. He also makes similar claims about racoons.

“You wouldn’t imagine it but racoons are so queer,” said Bastos.

“Think of your typical nuclear family you know, you’ve got the one parent, the second parent, that structured, binary, ugh, turn it on its head. Racoons are out here redesigning and reshaping the way that they’re parenting and raising their young.”

While scientists have observed same-sex sexual behaviour amongst animals, the contention that such behaviour resembles human homosexual behaviour is contended, much less human notions of “queerness.” Furthermore, the vast majority of animals do not engage in same-sex sexual behaviour.

Nevertheless, Bradwell points to animals that are hermaphrodites like slugs as an example of queer animals, making the comparison to gender fluidity. They also describe an anemone’s reproduction as asexual reproduction.

Bradwell and biologist Carin Bondar discuss homosexual behaviour amongst animals like dolphins, whose males copulate with one another to maintain social ties. In the discussion, Bradwell asks if she’s ever discovered homophobia amongst animals, to which Bondar states that humans are the only homophobic species.

“Humans are definitely not the only species to exhibit homosexuality, but we are the only species to exhibit homophobia, and that’s sad,” said Bondar.

The documentary is part of the CBC’s Pride Month programming.