A liger is a hybrid of lion and tiger right? So is it true that most hybirds are sterile? Unable to breed successfully to produce a new sub-species?
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Volt
ANSWERS: 6
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Yes. A mule is another example.
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One of the definitions of a species is that all the members of the species can mate with each other and produce fertile offspring. So Dogs are a species because although they are all different shapes and sizes, a chihuahua could impregnate a great dane... somehow I don't know how! However there are some problems with this definition because there are some members of species that can mate with each other and some members that can mate with some other members of their species. So the definition isn't perfect.
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Yes
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A cross between a lion and a tiger? They are indeed really real. www.vet.upenn.edu/.../62/animal_crackers.html
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Yes. A “liger” is the result of breeding a male lion with a female tiger. here is a pic of one:
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Yes, a liger is a cross between a lion and a tiger (males are infertile while females are able to reproduce). More specifically it is a cross between a male lion and a female tiger. A cross between a female lion and a male tiger is called a tigon. Whats really interesting is the genetics behind the differences between a liger and a tigon. Many people think they are the same but a liger is bigger. A male lion's genes "want" only the biggest and strongest offspring to survive, while a lioness' genes "want" as many offspring as possible to survive. As a result, the growth of the offspring in the womb of the lioness is limited. On the other hand, a male tiger's genes do not promote competetive growth with other offspring, so a tigress' genes do not limit the growth of the offspring in her womb. In a liger, the genes from the lion are causing the offspring to grow bigger, without growth inhibition from the female tiger. In a tigon, the male tiger's genes are not causing the offspring to grow large, and the genes from the lioness are inhibiting the growth. Therefore, ligers are significantly larger than tigons.
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