Hybridization, hybrid fitness and the evolution of adaptations.

This review focuses on two related outcomes of hybridization sensu lato (i.e. findings from both natural and experimental hybrids are discussed): (1) the production of hybrid genotypes with various fitnesses, and (2) the origin/transfer of adaptations in the Louisiana Iris species complex. Since effects on fitness, and the origin or transfer of adaptations, are of fundamental evolutionary importance, the examples discussed in this review reflect some of the most significant phenomena deriving from the transfer of genetic material via natural hybridization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]