Hybridization is the process of breeding different strains of plants or animals to increase genetic diversity and create desirable traits. It is commonly used in agriculture to create stronger and healthier crops, and in animal husbandry to create new breeds or strengthen existing ones. Crossbreeding is the most common type of hybridization, and it is used to create new flavors and increase resistance to disease and pests. Hybridization can also occur between different species within the same genus, but resulting animals are often sterile. Hybridization occurs naturally and can lead to the emergence of new species.
When a plant or animal is bred with a plant or animal of different strains, the process is known as hybridization. There are numerous reasons for creating hybrids, including increasing genetic diversity and breeding for specific traits. It is often practiced in agriculture, to make plants stronger, healthier and with desirable characteristics. Animal breeders also use the process to create new breeds or to try to breed unwanted traits, such as hip dysplasia in some purebred dogs.
The most common type of hybridization involves crossing two organisms of different breeds into the same species. This is also called crossbreeding. In agriculture it is used to create healthier crops or new flavors, such as the tangelo, a cross between a tangerine and a pomelo. In agriculture, it is vitally important to maintain the genetic diversity and, by extension, the health and longevity of a crop. Many large farms engage in monoculture, planting only one stump of a crop, which is very detrimental to diversity and to the plant. If the crop is susceptible to a particular fungus or insect, the entire field will be lost. Hybridized crops, on the other hand, tend to be more resistant to disease and pests.
In animal husbandry, hybridization is used to create new breeds or to strengthen a breed. Many purebred animals are also inbred, due to a limited gene pool, which tends to bring out genetic defects in animals. By hybridizing, breeders bring new genes into the mix, although the resulting animal is not a purebred. Depending on the studbook rules for the breed, this may or may not matter. In some cases, a crossbred animal may be bred to purebred to bring the next generation more in line with the breed standard, and mixed-breed animals will be accepted in the herd book.
In another variant, two animals of different species within the same genus are bred with each other. This is not always possible, and when it is possible, the resulting animal or crop is often sterile. Most animals hybridized in this way, such as mules and zorse, a horse/zebra cross, cannot reproduce naturally. Plant hybrids, on the other hand, are generally quite capable of reproducing. This will increase the overall genetic health of the plant population and in some cases bring out a desired trait, such as seedlessness.
Hybridization also occurs in nature and can bring out favorable traits from two different gene pools. It allows animals to adapt to changing environments, and if the hybrids thrive, a new species could emerge.
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