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I have often heard the claim that homosexuality exists in non-human animals. Sheep and dolphins seem to be common examples. I find it easy to believe that homosexual activity exists - some animals just get so horny that they will try and have sex with anything. But this is not really what we think of as homosexuality in human terms.

So, are there any documented examples or studies of exclusive homosexuality in non-human animals (preferably mammals) where

  • There are clear, well defined male and female genders,
  • The majority of sexual activity in the species occurs between opposite gendered individuals,
  • There are examples of specific individuals that always prefer same-gendered sexual activity rather than opposite-gendered sexual activity, even when both are available.
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    This article nytimes.com/2010/04/04/magazine/04animals-t.html has a lot of relevant material, although no direct answer to your question. The fruit flies on p. 7 may or may not be an example of what you're asking about. The article devotes a lot of space to explaining why (a) biologists usually have no way of knowing exactly what's going on, and (b) drawing morals for humans is kind of silly. On point a: they often can't easily tell what sex an animal is, and they also can't observe animals in the wild 24/7.
    – user4216
    Commented Aug 21, 2011 at 1:06
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    I think it is a moot point. Regardless of what animals do, I don't think we want to be using animals to define morality for humans. After all, several animals cannibalize their own young, but that doesn't make it moral for humans to do so just because it happens in nature. This line of argument doesn't work for either side of the argument.
    – JohnFx
    Commented Aug 21, 2011 at 4:42
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    I've heard there are a lot of human animals at College and University parties (and that a good number of them are, apparently, Engineering students).
    – Randolf Richardson
    Commented Aug 21, 2011 at 7:10

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Looks like the answer is yes.

WP http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homosexual_behavior_in_animals says:

One species in which exclusive homosexual orientation occurs, however, is that of domesticated sheep (Ovis aries).[8][9] "About 10% of rams (males) refuse to mate with ewes (females) but do readily mate with other rams."

The references are:

Animal Homosexuality: A Biosocial Perspective By Aldo Poiani, A. F. Dixson, Aldo Poiani, A. F. Dixson, p. 179, 2010, Cambridge University Press

Levay, Simon (2011). Gay, Straight, and The Reason Why The Science of Sexual Orientation. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Oxford University Press. p. 70-71.

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    Wikipedia (even when it has sources) is not considered a reputable source for a claim like this. What do the original articles say?
    – Sklivvz
    Commented Aug 21, 2011 at 7:40
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    Read more here about Wikipedia: meta.skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/289/…
    – Sklivvz
    Commented Aug 21, 2011 at 7:42
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    @Sklivvz OP posted the relevant sources. What’s wrong with copying Wikipedia’s succinct summary? It’s my understanding that this has always been acceptable, or even encouraged.
    – Konrad Rudolph
    Commented Aug 21, 2011 at 19:08
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    @ben: if the sources support the claims in Wikipedia then obviously there's no problem. However, it is often the case that the sources Wikipedia uses are... Not the best.
    – Sklivvz
    Commented Aug 21, 2011 at 21:26
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    Furthermore, the sources you chose are not peer reviewed. I mean, come on the wiki article is heavily sourced, surely you can find something more convincing... :)
    – Sklivvz
    Commented Aug 21, 2011 at 21:28

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