Ananova:

Zoo bosses in Holland are taking gays and lesbians on guided tours to reassure them that homosexuality is a natural phenomenon that happens throughout the animal world.

Star attractions during the tours at the Artis Zoo in Amsterdam are male monkeys that go nuts for each other, geese who take part in "gay marriages," - and a lesbian chimp.

And the highlight of the tour is a visit to the flamingo lake, where same sex "orgies" are not unusual, The Daily Star newspaper reports.

Officials at the zoo say the tour helps humans come to terms with their own sexuality.

Artis Zoo director Dr Maarten Frankenhuis said: "The idea is to show that homosexuality is a natural phenomenon. Many visitors are surprised. They realise that they themselves or their sons and daughters are not strange at all - they just belong to a minority."

Dr Frankenhuis said: "When homosexuality in animals was first discussed, it was thought not to occur, but animals simply respond to their own nature. They do not have the complications of humans.

"Homosexual animals are not regarded with suspicion by their own species. There is absolutely no rejection of homosexual companions, like you often find with humans."