In this article we are focusing on the hybrid species examples with detailed facts.
Hybrid in biological terms means a cross between two different species that results in the next generation offspring inheriting features from two different species. Hybridization is an interbreeding of two different species to generate new varieties possessing qualities and characteristics from two species which can be beneficial in many ways.
Examples of Hybrid Species
There are a number of natural hybrids as well as hybrids that are made in laboratories or by breeding different plants and animals.Some of the hybrid species examples are listed below:
- Liger (Panthera leo × Panthera tigris)
- Tigon (Panthera tigris × Panthera leo)
- Wholphin (Tursiops truncates × Pseudorca crassidens)
- Leopon (Panthera pardus × Panthera leo)
- Beefalo (Bubalus bubalis × Bos taurus)
- Jaglion (Panthera onca × Panthera leo)
- Zebroid (Equus zebra × Equus caballus)
- Geep (Ovis aries × Capra hircus)
- Cama (Camelus dromedarius × Lama glama)
- Savannah Cat (Felis catus × Leptailurus serval)
- Bengal cat (Felis catus × Prionailurus bengalensis)
- Green Sea Slug (Elysia chlorotica)
- Clymene dolphin (Stenella clymene)
- Narluga (Delphinapterus D. leucas × Monodon M. monoceros)
- Zubron (Bos taurus × Bison bonasus)
- Zeedonk (Equus zebra × Equus asinus)
- Pizzly (Ursus arctos × Ursus maritimus)
- Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus)
- Kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa)
- Pineapple (Ananas comosus)
- Peanut (Arachis hypogaea)
- Horseradish (Armoracia rusticana)
- Pigeon Pea (Cajanus cajan)
- Hemp (Cannabis sativa)
- American chestnut (Castanea dentata)
- Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa)
- Sour oranges (Citrus aurantium)
- Hazelnut (Corylus avellana)
- Strawberry (Fragaria ananassa)
- Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa)
- Apple (Malus domestica)
- Peppermint (Mentha piperita)
Liger (Panthera leo × Panthera tigris)
Liger is the hybrid of a male lion and a female tiger. They are the largest cat known in the world. Hercules a liger has been listed in the Guinness book of world record for being the largest living cat in the world. They are carnivorous and hunts other animals for food. They are found in Africa, Asia, Eurasia and North-America and ae capable of breeding.
Tigon (Panthera tigris × Panthera leo)
Tigon is also called Tigon and is a hybrid off spring of a male Tiger and Female Lion. They are capable of breeding and produce Li-Tigons their next generation off springs. Currently there are less than hundred tigons in the world. They have been kept in captivity for their protection.
Wholphin (Tursiops truncates × Pseudorca crassidens)
It is known to be a most rare hybrid that is produced as a result of mating between female common bottlenose dolphin and a false killer male whale. “Keikaimalu” is the world’s first known wholphin that survived. Their skin is dark grey and has 66 teeth, and are mostly found in warm temperate and tropical waters. Currently there are two wholphins known that have been kept in captivity for their protection at Sea Life Park in Hawaii.
Leopon (Panthera pardus × Panthera leo)
The first Leopon was bred in Kolhapur, India, their head resembles a lion and the rest of the body is similar to leopards. They live in captivity and have been bred in zoo. They are found in Germany, Japan and Italy.
Beefalo (Bubalus bubalis × Bos taurus)
They are known to be fertile cattle and docile in nature. They were bred in the United States by the interbreeding of a male buffalo and a domestic cow. They are found in USA and Australia. They are popular for their meet whichis lower in calories, cholesterol and saturated fats and are rich in protein.
Jaglion (Panthera onca × Panthera leo)
Jaglion or Jaguon are hybrid offspring of a Male Jaguar and a female Lion. They have been listed as endangered species but they can be produced easily. They live in zoos and their habitats are made up of trees, bushes, ponds, rocks, etc.
Zebroid (Equus zebra × Equus caballus)
They are produced as a result of the cross between a male zebra and a female horse and are also called Zorses. They are usually infertile. They are found in Africa zoos.
Geep (Ovis aries × Capra hircus)
It is a hybrid of Sheep and Goat, also known as Shoat. These hybrids are very rare because of the distant habitats of sheep and goats.
Cama (Camelus dromedarius × Lama glama)
It is a hybrid offspring of a male camel and a female llama and was produced in Dubai using the Artificial insemination technique. They were created to improve and enhance the wool production.
They are herbivores and feed on plant matters and shrubs.
Savannah Cat (Felis catus × Leptailurus serval)
It is a hybrid breed of cat produced by the selective breeding between a domestic cat and a serval. Serval is a wild cat found in Africa. They are kept in captives and are being sold by registered breeders in countries including USA, Canada, Mexica, Japan, Sweden, UK, France and Germany.
Bengal cat (Felis catus × Prionailurus bengalensis)
It is a hybrid of domestic cat and Asian leopard cat. They are water lovers and eat cat food.
Green Sea Slug (Elysia chlorotica)
They are found in Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New jersey, Maryland, Florid, Texas, Novo Scotia and Canada.They feed on Algae and retains its chloroplast in its digestive system and maintain them alive in their own gut for months. They incorporate the algae chloroplast through phagocytosis and make it a part of their own cellular content. The incorporationof chloroplasts allows them to undergo photosynthesis and absorb the energy irectly from the sunlight this is how the can survive for months even without food.
Clymene dolphin (Stenella clymene)
It is the Short-snouted spinner dolphin found in the Atlantic Ocean. It is the only known hybrid species in marine mammals. Thy eat small fish and they are very active, hunt in the night or in the twilight zone waters. Their total population is still unknown, an approximate number of 6,500 have been reported.
Narluga (Delphinapterus D. leucas × Monodon M. monoceros)
They are the hybrid result of mating between a female narwhal and a male beluga whale.
Zubron (Bos taurus × Bison bonasus)
It is a hybrid of domestic cattle and European bull. They are heavy and tough animals which are resistant to diseases and harsh environment.
Zeedonk (Equus zebra × Equus asinus)
Zonkey or Zeedonk is a hybrid species produced as a result of the mating between a female donkey and a make zebra. It looks unique in its appearance and are smaller in size. Charles Darwin mentioned about Zonkeys in his theory of “Origin of Species” in 1859. They are found in savannas and in open woodlands in Serengeti plains. They are herbivores and eat only plant materials and fruits.
Pizzly (Ursus arctos × Ursus maritimus)
Pizzly is a hybrid of Grizzly and a polar bear, also called Grolar beers. They have been found in Sachs harbour, Northwest Territories and on the Banks Island in Canadian Arctic.
Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus)
It is also known as Ladies’ fingers or ochro. It is a flowering plant with greed edible seed pods that are cooked as food. It is being cultivated in subtropical and warm tropical areas including, West Africa, Ethiopia, Southeast Asia and South Asia.
Kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa)
It is also known as Chinese gooseberry, an edible fruit that belongs to the family Actinidiaceace. A sweet kiwifruit with hairless skin has been produced by interspecific hybridization between A. deliciosa and A. arguta.
Pineapple (Ananas comosus):
It is an edible fruit plant that grows in tropical areas, it has been cultivated in South America for centuries and sound in Brazil, Bolivia, India, Paraguay and Ecuador.
Peanut (Arachis hypogaea):
It is a hybrid produced by the cross between A. cardenasii and A. Batizocoi in Bolivia. They have been made to be resistant against pest and disease tolerant. They are very important legume food crops being cultivated throughout tropical and sub-tropical areas.
Horseradish (Armoracia rusticana):
It is a Perennial plant that belongs to the Brassicaceae family. It is being cultivated worldwide and used as a spice and to add flavor to the food. It is grown in several areas in United States including, California, Claire, Wisconsin, and Tule Lake.
Pigeon Pea (Cajanus cajan):
It is a legume plant that is widely cultivated in Tropical and semitropical areas including, South and South East Asia, Africa, Latin America and India. It is known with different names depending on the region for example in India it is called Arhar dhal or Tur, in America it is known as Guandul.
Hemp (Cannabis sativa):
It is a unisexual day flowering plant and is distributed widely. It has been used widely as Industrial fiber, Seed Oil, Food, medicine and religious purposes.
American chestnut (Castanea dentata):
It is a rapidly growing deciduous tree. There are several related species including European sweet chestnut, Chinese chestnut and Japanese chestnut. The American and Chinese chestnut have been cross bred to produce the American-Chinese Hybrid species in American Chestnut Foundation to create genetically similar American species with resistant qualities inherited from Chinese species.
Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa):
It is unique in its nutritional value and has been known worldwide because of its high protein content. It is gluten free and contains high amounts of fatty acids, minerals, vitamins, fibers and carbohydrates. It is a herbaceous plant found in the Andean region of South America, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Argentina and Chile.
Sour oranges (Citrus aurantium):
It is also known as Bitter bigarade or Serville orange. It is a native plant to Southeast Asia, Fiji, Samoa and Guam, Arab, Florida and is commercially produced inmany countries.
Hazelnut (Corylus avellana):
It is a flowering plant that belong to the family Betuliaceae, found in Europe and Western Asia. They are grown widely and produced commercially in Europe, Turkey, Iran and Caucasus. They are also known as cobnut. They are rich in proteins, unsaturated fats, manganese, copper, vitamin E, thiamine and magnesium.
Strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa)
It was originated in Europe and now became one of the very important and popular food crops. Now it became largely cultivated variety throughput the world. Strawberries are rich in vitamin C. They grow well in subtropical to temperate areas. It is an allooctoploid produced from an interspecific hybridization between Fragaria virginiana and Fragaria chiloensis.
Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa)
It is a flowering plant found in West Africa, Southeast Asia, Latin America and Caribbean. It is also known as Florida cranberry, red sorrel or Jamaica sorrel. It is used for medicinal purpose as a diuretic and mild laxative.
Apple (Malus domestica)
It is an edible fruit cultivated worldwide and is produced commercially on a large scale. Apple production countries include, China, United States, Turkey, Poland, Iran and Italy.
Peppermint (Mentha × piperita)
It is a hybrid mint also known as Mentha balsamea Wild produced by a cross between watermint and spearmint. It is found in Europe, Middle East, Argentina and the United Nations. It contains high menthol content and essential oils. Peppermint oil is beneficial for medicinal purposes, for instance it is used temporarily to treat irritable bowel syndrome, for muscle pain, nerve pain and itching.
Benefits of Hybrid Species
Plant species can breed easily and the resulting hybrids are mostly fertile. Plant hybrids are beneficial to produce viable seeds, for crop improvement, enhancement of production and quality of the fruits or vegetables.
Plant hybrids are more advantageous than animal hybrids because most of the animal hybrids cannot reproduce. Hybrid mules like Zeedonk could be useful for Humans as work animals.
Cama is a hybrid species of camel and llama is useful for wool production and certain beef hybrids have been produced to increase the quality and taste of meat in food industries.
Hybridization helps to produce stronger and efficient hybrid animals for instance, Cattles that could produce more amount of milk or meat.
Hybrids are produced with certain unique qualities inherited from both the species that makes them capable of surviving under different or even harsh environments and to feed on variety of foods.
Also Read:
- Spider characteristics
- Animal cell structure
- Gram positive bacteria examples
- Functions of mitochondria
- Brewer s yeast
- Miscible examples
- Do animal cells have chloroplasts
- Are bacteria aerobic or anaerobic
- Is secondary transport active
- Butterflies examples
Hey! I am Sneha Sah, I have completed post graduation in Biotechnology. Science has always been fascinating to me and writing is my passion. As an academic writer my aim is to make Science easy and simple to learn and read.