Despite an earlier heartbreak, a committed same-sex pair of king penguins in Auckland is spending a loving Valentine's Day as a full family.

Thelma and Louise have been mates for more than eight years, even staying together when it's not time to breed. It's an unusual feat for the species, which often break up and find new partners every breeding season.

"They've got quite a strong bond," penguin keeper and team leader Laura Seaman told Newshub. The same-sex couple live at Auckland's Kelly Tarlton's and were incubating an egg just before Christmas. Unfortunately for them, the egg turned out to be infertile - but they've still been able to expand their family.

"Thelma and Louise took a chick in, after it was realised the chick's biological parents weren’t up to the task," penguin keeper Kristin Buckley told Newshub. "In order to give the chick the greatest chance to thrive... the egg was given to Thelma and Louise one week before it was due to hatch. "Thelma and Louise have such a great track record in fostering chicks, having successfully raised three chicks."

For king penguins, it doesn't matter if the two parents are male, female, or one of each, Ms Seaman said. All that matters is there are two of them to swap off baby-raising duties while the other gets some food. In this case, the mother of the egg abandoned it after it was laid, leaving the father to incubate it alone. Read more via News Hub