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Old November 3, 2000, 02:24 PM   #12
Keith Rogan
Senior Member
 
Join Date: March 11, 1999
Location: Kodiak, Alaska
Posts: 1,014
Bad,

The prevailing view for many years was just as you describe, based on the characteristics of the animals. However, they've now done the DNA testing and it shows otherwise. DNA doesn't lie (except in California courts...).
You have to remember that these crosses happened long ago and there has been hundreds of thousands of years of adaptation to the environment going on that confuses the general impression.

Here's a couple of other weird items that have come up through DNA sampling.

SE Alaska brown bears are genetically distinct from inland grizzlies and brown bears found elsewhere in Alaska. SE brownies are actually closer genetically to polar bears than other brown/grizzlies - weird but true.

The Rainbow trout is not a trout. It's actually a salmon.
The Atlantic salmon is actually a trout.
Brook and lake trout are actually char.

All these fish are members of the "salmonid" family which includes salmon, trout and char, but they've had them on the wrong branches all these years.

It's like nothing is sacred anymore!



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Keith
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