12 Animals That Mate for Life

WOLVES

You’ll often hear the term “alpha male” applied to dominant human dudes, but in actual wolf packs, alpha males don’t act alone. An alpha male has his alpha female by his side, and they share dominance in the pack. During mating season in particular, the ladies rule. Those little pups need to be taken care of, and the pack knows who’s in charge. That’s the sign of a strong bond between life partners: knowing when to give and take dominance in the relationship. Wolf couples don’t set an example just for their packs, but for humans, too! (WolfCountry.net)

SWANS

Swans are often used as a symbol of romance. First of all, they do that adorable thing where they crane their heads together, their graceful necks creating a heart shape. It’s perfect for greeting cards. On top of that, swans are famously monogamous. How sweet! They really love each other. But only to a point, it turns out. Newer research shows that “divorce” can sometimes split up longstanding swan couples. Evidence suggests that the reason behind such events is that a couple may find themselves unable to breed with each other any longer. It’s not a fairy tale, but sometimes practical matters trump true love. Happily, swans are mature, and divorced couples may still live closely and cordially with each other, even with their new partners. Just like Bruce and Demi! (EcoLocalizer)

BEAVERS

Beavers stay together for the kids. Not only are these loyal creatures faithful to their mates, but they’re also devoted parents. Dads don’t just go off to build dams and whatnot while moms stay at home raising the kits; both male and female beavers take an active hand in bringing up their offspring. And once those kits reach about 2 years of age, they go off to find true love of their own, and the beautiful cycle of monogamous beaver love continues. (University of Massachusetts)

FRENCH ANGELFISH

French angelfish make such perfect couples that it would embarrass most humans. Not only do these fish stay with their mates until death, but they spend fully half of their time swimming side by side. That’s about the maximum about of QT possible before it starts to get clingy. Not only that, but when French angelfish couples come together again after time apart, they engage in what’s called “carouseling,” circling round and round each other. When was the last time you and your boyfriend or girlfriend were so happy to see each other that you both literally spun around in the pure bliss of being together? (Oceana)

BALD EAGLES

The bald eagle is the national symbol of the United States, a proud icon of patriotism. But they could serve just as well or better as symbols of faithful monogamy. When one of these birds of prey finds his or her mate, the pair stays together for life. Bald eagles spend migration alone, but whenever mating season rolls around, they go back to their special someone. Maybe that’s the secret to a successful relationships, you guys: alternating time spent apart with gloriously ecstatic reunions. After all, they say absence makes the heart grow fonder. (National Wildlife Federation)

PRAIRIE VOLES

Prairie voles are among the most lovingly monogamous creatures on our planet. Like the rest of the animals on this list, prairie voles mate for life, and they really mean it. Monogamy is more than just a social practicality for these little fuzzies. A prairie vole couple doesn’t just mate together, but they also spend their free time together, build homes together, groom each other — they don’t even look at other potential mates. Males even protect their partners with a sense of chivalry that would make a 13th-century knight blush in shame. And after the stork comes, both male and female prairie voles are devoted parents to their offspring. They’re truly the Ozzies and Harriets of the animal kingdom. (Environmental Graffiti)

SHINGLEBACK SKINKS

When these slow-moving lizards enter into a committed relationship, they’re really in it for the long haul. Once a male sees a female he likes, he’ll begin to follow her, sticking by her while he courts her by gently nudging and licking her. This can go on for months before the pair even copulates. (We’re not sure how many dates that counts as, but probably a lot.) Once their bond is formed, a couple will seek each other out to mate again every breeding season. They may stay together for 20 years or longer. And when a shingleback skink dies, its surviving partner will remain by its mate's dead body for days, tenderly nudging it, perhaps trying in vain to revive it, or perhaps simply grieving. D’aww. (Encyclopedia of Life)

BARN OWLS

When barn owls choose each other as mates, they stick together until death. That’s terribly romantic. Their mating rituals, however, are a little more aggressive than what most of us think of as typical romance. A male barn owl initiates courtship with showy display flights and a lot of loud yelling and whistling. Then they hover around the chosen female until it’s time to mate. They’re kind of like the loud, obnoxious juiceheads you can find at any trendy bar or club. But hey, some people are into that. Who are we to judge? At least the barn owls, once they hook up, never cheat. (Cornell University Lab of Ornithology)

PENGUINS

Penguins are often cited for their monogamy, but as cute as it is to imagine the same pair of penguins waddling around flipper-in-flipper for eternity, the truth is that they are only serially monogamous, which means pairs usually stay together for one breeding season at a time. Exceptions to this are not uncommon, however, and some pairs are known to seek each other out again and again over many seasons. In fact, a particularly devoted couple of Magellanic penguins tracked by scientists have been observed to return to each other every season for 16 years, and are still going strong. Now that’s love. (People Pets)

GIBBONS

For a long time, gibbons were believed to be fully monogamous; indeed, they were considered the closest primate relatives that humans have who live the 'til-death-do-us-part lifestyle. But more recent studies have shown that gibbon love is a bit more complicated than that. Gibbons are socially monogamous but reproductively non-monogamous. In other words, a gibbon and its life partner stick together at home and defend their territory together as a team, but when it comes to having sex, these apes swing, and we don’t just mean from branches. What's important is that socially monogamous partners return to each other at night with a mutual understanding, and that’s still kind of romantic, right? (ScienceBlogs)