Mating with the wrong species can be right

The evolutionary importance of interspecific hybridisation has been a controversial issue for quite some time. Some view mating between different species as a maladaptive process; others stress the adaptive value of choosing heterospecific mates under ecological conditions that favour hybrids. A recent paper by Pfennig is the first study to make a priori predictions of how adaptive choice between con- and heterospecific partners should vary with ecological conditions, and then testing these predictions experimentally.