Cross breeds/Hybrids in the earth's oceans

[cracker]

How many cross breed/ hybrid life forms have we identified so far? Not just fish but other animals as well. Are some forms marine life more likely to cross breed than others? Seems like Mother Nature doing the evolution thing is alive & well.

[kathywithbirds]

Is there some list for this?

[mps9506]

I found one, fish and woman hybrid!

[cracker]

If anyone has an authentic pics of Mermaids or Reef Babes that would work ! They are however, in a class all to themselves. True Reef Babes aka Mermaids are already known to be extremely rare & usually taken. Now I was wondering about fish & other marine life.

[BoomerD]

Since fish don't just "wander around to the dark side of the reef and do the backstroke together," there aren't a lot of hybrids. There are some centropyge angels that will hybridize, (like your little angel cross) and reportedly some tangs that hybridize, but not a lot of others that we see in the hobby.
Considering that most tropical marine fish are pelagic spawners, (females expel eggs and males squirt sperm into the ocean currents and let nature take its course) it's not surprising that some do intermix and end up as hybrids...however, the ones that are "egg laying" rarely do. Some clownfish are hybridized in captivity, and maybe some in the wild...but it's less common (AFAIK) than the pelagic spawners...after all, if 3000 people all shoot their shotguns into the same tree, it's only natural that a few BB's will get jammed together...

[mps9506]

Occasionally see Holacanthus hybrids as well.
And since most hybrids can't reproduce it isn't exactly evolution happening Kind of a dead end although they may exhibit hybrid vigour.
This is a great thing for aquacultured food fish (something that's been done for years with corn).
I've never looked into the hybridization of other oceanic critters, I like the fish and babes concept though

I'm not even gonna touch how all this involves evolutionary genetics and conservation genetics