Naked Science Forum
Life Sciences => Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution => Topic started by: chris on 26/08/2017 09:49:32
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Are Asian and African elephants able to breed with each other?
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Apparently
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motty
but it can't happen in the wild.
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Thanks; reading that reference suggests that it's theoretically - and genetically - possible and plausible, but the track record doesn't sound good...
Any geneticists who can shed some light on the feasibility of this?
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I'm a bit surprised that those two species have been able to interbreed at all (according to that reference) given the extensive geographical isolation and taxonomical difference. They are not even the same genus.
I'm not sure if there are any specific genetic factors that would make their offspring incompatible with life. However, so much has to "go right" for an elephant between conception and adulthood for it to succeed, that I'd think that any suboptimal physiological factors would surely have to disadvantage such a hybrid (near enough is probably not good enough). For example, I would wonder about the effects of:
- different foetal size vs. placental blood supply
- different foetal energetic/nutritional requirements vs. maternal requirements and intake
- different foeto-pelvic proportion
- slightly different gestational period
- different composition and volume of the milk and colostrum
- different growth rates and possible increased susceptibility to disease (eg. elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus)
- different height ratio between the calf and the mother's teats
- social factors (eg. maternal acceptance, acceptance into the herd)
- dental malocclusion from overcrowding
- skeletal abnormalities combined with an enormous body weight