It’s official and it’s forever: Alvin Tinamou and his mate Adela have separated permanently.

In a brief statement released this morning, the publisher of The Avian Messenger and organizer of Park media’s annual Month Without Metaphor said it was “with profound sorrow” that he advised that he and his mate Adela have decided to “pursue their lives separately from now on.”

The pair, who have known each other since they were young, suffered the traumatic theft of their nest and three eggs last June. Friends of Tinamou told The Mammalian Daily that he blames himself for the loss and has been unable to recover from it. In September, he took an indefinite leave of absence from the newspaper. Only close friends and family have been in contact with him since.

“Alvin was in charge of the nest and he feels that he failed. Period,” said one friend who does not want to be named. “If Adela could bring herself to forgive him, I think that would help him heal, but she can’t.”

Today’s statement by Tinamou did not address either his return to The Avian Messenger or his rôle in this year’s Month Without Metaphor.