Abstract
To date, more than 81 species of tropical coral reef fish have been reported to hybridize in nature, spanning multiple families, including the Chaetodontidae, Pomacanthidae, and Labridae. Hybridization, however, is seemingly rare among benthic nesting species that engage in pair spawning, such as the Pomacentridae. Here, we present evidence for the first molecularly confirmed record of hybridization within the genus
Dascyllus
;
D. aruanus
and
D. reticulatus
. Interestingly, although many hybridization events are attributed to peripheral range effects or areas of limited overlap among otherwise allopatric species, this hybrid individual was collected from the northern Great Barrier Reef, centrally located within the distribution ranges of both species. The hybrid exhibited coloration and meristic counts intermediate between
D. aruanus
and
D. reticulatus
. Diagnostic genetic markers and subsequent microsatellites analysis confirmed that this individual was a hybrid offspring of
D. aruanus
and
D. reticulatus
, with the latter providing the maternal contribution. The occurrence of the
D. aruanus
×
D. reticulatus
hybrid on the Great Barrier Reef represents an exception to the otherwise species-specific haplotypes. The nuclear diagnostic marker which was identified during this study could serve as a hybrid indicator and benefit future hybrid investigations for hybridization between these two species.