Penelope (platypus)

Penelope
SpeciesPlatypus
SexFemale
BornBurleigh Heads, Gold Coast, Australia
DiedDisappeared July 1957
New York City
OwnerDavid Fleay, Bronx Zoo
ResidenceBronx Zoo

Penelope (disappeared July 1957) was a platypus at the Bronx Zoo known for faking a pregnancy and abandoning her mate, Cecil.[1] In 1947, when she and two other platypuses were sent to New York City, they became the only platypuses living in captivity outside of Australia at the time.[2] Penelope made headlines for her repeated refusal to mate with the zoo's male platypus, Cecil. The New York Times said that Penelope was not lovesick but "sick of love" when she escaped from the zoo's platypusary in 1957, never to be seen again.[3]

  1. ^ "Zoo Mourns Penelope: Platypus Who Fled Ardent Mate 'Probably Dead'". The New York Times. September 18, 1957. p. 35. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on May 12, 2023. Retrieved May 12, 2023.
  2. ^ "Animals: End of the Affair". Time. August 19, 1957. ISSN 0040-781X. Archived from the original on June 16, 2007.
  3. ^ "Platypus Flees Ardent Zoo Mate: Penelope Is Missing in Bronx After Cecil Forces Way Into Her Hideaway". The New York Times. August 6, 1957. p. 28. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on May 13, 2023. Retrieved May 13, 2023.