# Interbreeding Birds **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 19, 1999, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311 "1999-07-19T18:13:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 1999, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/1 "1999-07-20T05:53:00Z")
Im sure this subject thas been broached before. BUT I notice that different breeds of domestic cats and dogs interbreed. Do different types of birds interbreed? Are there “mutt” birds? Is this how Warner Brothers came up with the “Chickenhawk”? * * * [http://www.geocities.com/capitolhill/parliament/1685/](http://www.geocities.com/capitolhill/parliament/1685/) ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 1999, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/2 "1999-07-19T18:13:00Z")
I don’t know about bird interbreeding, but according to Merriam-Webster a chicken hawk is not a cross-breed but a " hawk that preys or is believed to prey on chickens ". I guess it can also prey on dogs if they are suitably convinced that they are in fact chickens. Alphagene ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 1999, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/3 "1999-07-19T18:15:00Z")
Different breeds of dogs are the same species, therefore they are able to interbreed. A bird from one species would generally not be able to breed with a bird from another species (although there may be exceptions between closely related species, the way horses and donkeys can interbreed). I’m sure a chicken is far enough removed from a hawk to make breeding impossible. I believe the chickenhawk is an actual type of hawk (that eats chickens), not a mix between a chicken and a hawk. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 1999, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/4 "1999-07-19T18:32:00Z")
Mind you I’m, not a taxonomist, but I think you are confusing breeds (or varieties) with species. The different breeds of dog are all of the species Canis familiaris. Different species do not interbreed. Of course there are exceptions (Horse(male)+Donkey=Mule). These are usually sterile. Within birds there is a hybrid called a mule. It’s a cross between a canary and another finch. My dad’s an entomologist, and within his speciality (lygaeidea), he’s found that the shape of the genitalia controls inter-species mating. I guess behavior helps keep the bird species pure. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 1999, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/5 "1999-07-19T19:12:00Z")
Some varieties of macaws are related close enough to interbreed, but as far as I know this pretty much occurs in captivity when two different species are deliberatly paired off. The hybrid birds come in gorgeous colors, but many people discourage interbreeding because macaws are threatened in the wild (and of limited suply in captivity)- they want to make sure the different species stay intact ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 1999, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/6 "1999-07-19T19:15:00Z")
So if a regal robin redbreast from ancient Greece mated with a hoot owl, would their offspring by Robin Hoot, Prince of Thebes? ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 1999, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/7 "1999-07-19T20:08:00Z")
A number of different species of birds do interbreed, producing hybrids. However, it’s not going to be something like a pigeon and an ostrich. It’s more likely to be a black-capped gnatcatcher and a California gnatcatcher. The American Ornithologists keep combining or separating species, based in part on how well these hybrids are doing. For example, the two gnatcatchers have only recently been considered separate species. As mentioned above, “chickenhawk” is just a colloquial name for a hawk that preys on chickens. I think red tailed hawks are the ones most likely to earn this nickname. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 1999, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/8 "1999-07-19T21:03:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Robin Hoot, Prince of Thebes You’re going to pay for that, Dex! ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 1999, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/9 "1999-07-20T03:14:00Z")
Both for the pun and the bad geography - Thebes is in Egypt. But kill him for the pun first, we’ll take over after that. * * * Cave Diem! Carpe Canem! ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 1999, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/10 "1999-07-20T04:25:00Z")
[[A number of different species of birds do interbreed, producing hybrids. However, it’s not going to be something like a pigeon and an ostrich.]] Yup – a good example is the closely-related Mallard and the Black Duck, which interbreed with some frequency. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 1999, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/11 "1999-07-20T08:28:00Z")
Seems finches can all interbreed as well. Around here released cage birds frequently interbreed with the wild sparrows producing such oddities as quarter sized sparrows or bizzare multi-hued flocks. Nature eventually takes it’s course and the familier brown ones become dominant again. Happens about twice yearly with the freakish one popping up more rarely. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 1999, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/12 "1999-07-20T13:40:00Z")
\<\< Both for the pun and the bad geography - Thebes is in Egypt \>\> Damn, I knew I shouldn’ta had that additional gin and tonic. But if a redbird mated with a Cincinatti nut-hatch, would the offspring be called a Cardinal Cin? ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 1999, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/13 "1999-07-23T03:13:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Yup – a good example is the closely-related Mallard and the Black Duck, which interbreed with some frequency. ## I could make a Daffy joke here, but I’m not gonna. “Age is mind over matter; if you don’t mind, it don’t matter.” -Leroy “Satchel” Paige ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 1999, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/14 "1999-07-23T06:18:00Z")
I think there is often uncertainty among ornithologists as to whether two types of bird are separate species, or just regional variations of the same species. There are a lot of revisions. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 1999, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/15 "1999-08-02T21:05:00Z")
Olentzero There is/was a Thebes in Greece (am I missing another pun?), I do like your “beware the day” and “sieze the dog.” ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 1999, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/16 "1999-08-04T04:50:00Z")
I love the way these threads frazzle at the end. Carpe Cyprinus carpio ! ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 1999, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interbreeding-birds/2311/17 "1999-08-04T04:51:00Z")
I love the way these threads frazzle at the end. Carpe Cyprinus carpio !