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bioRxiv · 10.64898/2026.05.06.723294

Recent hybridisation and ghost introgression among a trio of island passerines

Williams, A.·Estandia, A.·Sendell-Price, A. T.·Carpenter, A.·Ruegg, K.·Filatov, D.·Clegg, S.
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Abstract

Hybridisation between species was once considered a relatively uncommon occurrence but is now recognised to occur frequently across many different taxa. It can result in homogenisation of previously distinct forms, a potential conservation issue, but can also act as a catalyst for diversification through introgression and sharing of favourable genes. Repeated rounds of island colonisation followed by speciation result in secondary sympatry, with the potential for hybridisation between early and late arrivers. In the southwest Pacific, this situation has arisen in the avian family Zosteropidae (the white-eyes). Here we use whole genome sequencing of live birds and historical specimens to characterise hybridisation between three white-eye species on Norfolk Island: two island endemics, Zosterops tenuirostris and the now-extinct Zosterops albogularis, and Zosterops lateralis, which colonised the island in 1904. Despite over two million years of divergence between Z. lateralis and the two endemics, we provide genomic evidence of their hybridisation. First, we confirm the identities of three Z. lateralis x Z. tenuirostris hybrids and additionally identify one Z. lateralis x Z. albogularis hybrid. We also report asymmetric, genome-wide introgression from both endemics into Z. lateralis, with introgressed regions enriched for a range of potential functions. However, despite this introgression, species boundaries have been maintained, and the extant endemic Z. tenuirostris does not appear to be at risk of genetic extinction. Our work additionally demonstrates an unusual case of recent ghost introgression from the extinct Z. albogularis into Z. lateralis. This study sheds light on the genomic outcomes of secondary sympatry and its potential consequences for single-island endemics.

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Williams, A., Estandia, A., Sendell-Price, A. T., Carpenter, A., Ruegg, K., Filatov, D., Clegg, S.. 2026-05-07. Recent hybridisation and ghost introgression among a trio of island passerines. https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.05.06.723294

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