- Apr 27, 2011
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Great pictures and documentation! I find these hybrids interesting and I would like to share some information to clarify. All geese have 40 chromosomes. All birds are actually rather consistent in having either 40 or 39 pairs of chromosomes. There are other factors beside chromosome number that can cause chromosomal mismatch such as genes or whole set of genes that can be arranged differently on corresponding chromosomes of different species. Waterfowl form hybrids more readily than most other groups of animals. The Canada x Domestic hybrids are very common, but are almost universally considered sterile. However I know of several credible accounts of Canada x domestic Anser hybrids being fertile. It may be the case that the males of these hybrids are rarely fertile. Yes, there may be confusion over the parentage of any given clutch of eggs unless the parents were kept in isolation. However, it is also often the case that second generation backcross hybrids of many hybrid crosses of different species will resemble one parent species very strongly, further obscuring matters.
I find the pictures posted of this cross very interesting. It appears to me that the domestic gander that fathered the hybrids has a single copy of the partially dominant sex linked dilution gene Sd. This would be consistent with your description of gender and color of the offspring. Half of the female and half of the male offspring would receive one copy of the gene resulting in half the males being light gray/blue and half the females being white. Depending on other genes the Sd dilution will cause females to be white (white domestic greylag breeds) or gray (sex linked breeds such as Pilgrim). If this is true then you appeared to nail the sex of the offspring. I would love to learn how you were able to determine the sex of the offspring, especially since they had unusual honks! Did you mostly go by size and the clucks that you mentioned?
It would be great to watch any of the male hybrids to see if they produce any offspring, especially the gray one. Since it carries the dilution gene, it should be obvious if it was the father. Suppose if for example just one in 20 males are fertile, then you can see how difficult it would be to confirm hybrid fertility when just one of the 4 male offspring has stuck around thus far.
Was there any new offspring in 2011, or 2012?
I find the pictures posted of this cross very interesting. It appears to me that the domestic gander that fathered the hybrids has a single copy of the partially dominant sex linked dilution gene Sd. This would be consistent with your description of gender and color of the offspring. Half of the female and half of the male offspring would receive one copy of the gene resulting in half the males being light gray/blue and half the females being white. Depending on other genes the Sd dilution will cause females to be white (white domestic greylag breeds) or gray (sex linked breeds such as Pilgrim). If this is true then you appeared to nail the sex of the offspring. I would love to learn how you were able to determine the sex of the offspring, especially since they had unusual honks! Did you mostly go by size and the clucks that you mentioned?
It would be great to watch any of the male hybrids to see if they produce any offspring, especially the gray one. Since it carries the dilution gene, it should be obvious if it was the father. Suppose if for example just one in 20 males are fertile, then you can see how difficult it would be to confirm hybrid fertility when just one of the 4 male offspring has stuck around thus far.
Was there any new offspring in 2011, or 2012?
