CritterFest: Second Nature

Did you know that clownfish change sex from male to female? (So if Nemo’s mom had died in real life, his dad would have become his mom!) Did you know that albatross, penguins and swans parent in same sex pairs? Or that bonobos, who are just as closely related to us as chimps, are matriarchal and have same-sex sex every day?! Turns out Darwin wasn’t right about everything. He nailed that theory of evolution, but his understanding of gender and sexual diversity in the animal kingdom was more than a little misguided. Turns out the natural world is way more diverse and complex than he — or your high school biology teacher — may have led you to believe. Meanwhile, many unsung contemporary scientists, like evolutionary biologists Joan Roughgarden and Patricia Brennan and primatologist Amy Parish, have been zealously studying animal behavior and anatomy and exposing the myth of the gender binary for decades, despite ongoing resistance to their findings from the research establishment. Elliot Page narrates SECOND NATURE, a hilarious and heartening romp through the animal world, led by brave scientists fighting censorship as they reveal the truth about our nature. Post-screening Q&A with subject and researcher Dr. Patty Rodriguez Brennan.