Scientists document rare hybrid of green jay and blue jay in the wild

(From left): A male blue jay, the hybrid bird, and a female green jay. PIC COURTESY/Macaulay Library

Biologists at The University of Texas (UT) in Austin documented an unusual bird that appears to be the offspring of a green jay and a blue jay. This may represent one of the first known cases of a hybrid animal arising in the wild because of recent shifts in climate.

Although these two parent species are separated by about 7 million years of evolution, their habitats did not overlap until few decades ago. "We think it's the first observed vertebrate that's hybridised as a result of two species both expanding their ranges due, at least in part, to climate change," said Brian Stokes, a UT graduate student and first author of the study.

Stokes pointed out that most previous vertebrate hybrids were linked to human influence, such as invasive species introductions or one species encroaching on another's territory (for example, polar bears and grizzlies). In this case, however, both parent species expanded their ranges at the same time as weather patterns shifted, creating the opportunity for hybridisation.

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