Image Gallery: Stunning Dual-Sex Animals

News
By Wynne Parry
published

One bird's brain

Zebra finch gynandromorph

(Image credit: Robert Agate, Courtesy PNAS)

This gynandromorph zebra finch has the orange check of a male on its right side, while its left side has female plummage. A study of its brain revealed differences between the male and female halves, indicating that sex identity was influenced by the genetic sex of the individual cells themselves.

On the wings

Rose-breasted grosbeak gynandromorph

(Image credit: Carnegie Museum of Natural History)

This rose-breasted grosbeak has the red wing lining of a male on one side and the yellow wing lining of a female on the other. It was captured during a bird banding effort.

Wynne Parry
Wynne Parry
Wynne was a reporter at The Stamford Advocate. She has interned at Discover magazine and has freelanced for The New York Times and Scientific American's web site. She has a masters in journalism from Columbia University and a bachelor's degree in biology from the University of Utah.