Rapid assessment of the extent of feral introgression in British and Irish Rock Dove (Columba livia) populations

Abstract

Interbreeding of related forms following anthropogenic activity can lead to genomic homogenization, contributing to decreasing biodiversity. Assessing spatiotemporal variation in the extent of introgression is important for conservation but can be expensive and logistically complex. The Rock DoveColumba liviais threatened by interbreeding with its feral conspecific and it is difficult to identify wild birds when wild, feral and mixed populations exist. Here, using British and Irish populations, I assess whether the proportion of birds with wild type plumage corresponds to distinctive head morphotypes differing between Rock Doves and feral pigeons, and whether plumage can be used to identify Rock Dove flocks and infer the extent of hybridization. I also determine whether plumage proportions have changed since a prior study was carried out in the 1960s. I show that flocks in which > 75% of individuals have wild type plumage consist of Rock Doves, as determined by head morphotype. Plumage proportions vary geographically, corroborating known genomic assessments of Scottish and Irish Rock Doves. Finally, the number of birds with aberrant plumages has increased since the 1960s, even in regions where no such birds were identified previously. This highlights the value of the Rock Dove as a current case study with which to explore the process of extinction by hybridization.