![]() ![]() ![]() The researchers determined that the bird Gosser spotted was the healthy, 1-year-old male offspring of a rose-breasted grosbeak and scarlet tanager, the first-ever documented hybrid of its kind. Toews explained that the two species have such divergent nesting preferences that they have been on independent evolutionary trajectories for at least 10 million years - until now. Tanagers typically prefer the canopy cover of mature forests while rose-breasted grosbeaks are happy out in the open along the edges of woodlands. How and where they met remains a mystery to researchers, as the two species prefer different habitats. The story begins with a very unlikely encounter between a female rose-breasted grosbeak and a male scarlet tanager. “I love this story, because it starts with a little mystery and ends with a surprising discovery,” said David Toews, lead author of the study and assistant professor of biology at Penn State. Their work was recently published in the journal Ecology and Evolution. To follow up on Gosser’s tip, a team of researchers led by Penn State was able to use a combination of genomic sequencing and song analysis to identify the specimen as a rare hybrid bird, whose ancestors haven’t shared the same breeding location or lineage for 10 million years. He took some photos and called for backup-a team from the National Aviary in Pittsburgh arrived soon after to catch the bird and obtain a blood sample. When Gosser finally located the songbird, he saw what appeared to be a rose-breasted grosbeak, but it sounded just like a scarlet tanager. The blood-red bird with black wings and tail is a favorite among birders for both its beauty and rarity, as the birds prefer to stay hidden high in the forest canopy. In June of 2020, Stephen Gosser, a self-described “diehard birder,” was out in the woods of Western Pennsylvania when he thought he heard the song of the elusive and strikingly beautiful scarlet tanager. The two species have such divergent nesting preferences that they have been on independent evolutionary trajectories for at least 10 million years - until now. Image: This healthy, 1-year-old male offspring of a rose-breasted grosbeak and scarlet tanager is the first-ever documented hybrid of its kind. ![]()
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