Captive-born intergeneric hybrid of a Guiana and bottlenose dolphin: Sotalia guianensis x Tursiops truncatus

Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) and Guiana dolphin (Sotalia guianensis) live in sympatry along the Caribbean Coast of Central and South America and social interactions between these species have been described in the Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica, including sexual encounters. Here we examine and document the only known hybridization event between a male Guiana dolphin and a female bottlenose dolphin, in captivity at Oceanario Islas del Rosario (Colombian Caribbean), using photographic and genetic evidence from mitochondrial DNA markers and nuclear autosomal introns. Zoo Biol 00:1-11, 2009. (c) 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.