Pig-boar hybrids in Fukushima evacuation zone rewrite wild genomes
Chelsea Haney
When escaped domestic pigs bred with wild boar after the Fukushima evacuation, researchers gained a rare chance to observe large-scale hybridization. New findings show that maternally inherited rapid breeding accelerated genetic turnover, quickly diluting pig ancestry in the wild population. The result offers a novel lens on how fast-breeding traits can quietly reshape wildlife genetics.
In the months after the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, abandoned farms across the evacuation zone..