No evidence of a hybrid origin of the ashy-throated parrotbill Sinosuthora alphonsiana

This mini-review is dedicated to a critical re-appraisal of the putative hybrid origin of the grey-cheeked populations of the ashy-throated parrotbill Sinosuthora alphonsiana that was postulated based on the results of a clustering analysis using a set of five nuclear loci. However, the number of genetically admixed individuals is lower than 10% in the proposed hybrid form and largely restricted to a single population in closest vicinity of one proposed parental taxon. Based on total evidence from mitochondrial and nuclear markers the proposed hybrid taxon is indistinguishable from the second postulated parental taxon. Wide-range allelic introgression in a broad zone of range overlap along with incomplete lineage sorting of nuclear markers is a more plausible alternative explanation for the patterns observed. So far, there is no convincing evidence of a hybrid origin of the grey-cheeked ashy-throated parrotbill populations.