Steve, Neville, et al; I will admit to seeing this whole arguement a little late but I do have a point. What occurs if one of these "Natural Hybrids" upon reaching maturity and flowering manages to cross itself back to either of the natural parents? What happens if that occurs a couple of times? To explain better lets say Sp 'A' & Sp 'B' produce a natural hybrid 'AB'. 'AB' then manages to cross itself back to 'A' producing 'AAB'. 'AAB' then manages to cross itself back to 'B' or 'A' or indeed even 'C' if you are really unlucky!! Couldn't that hybrid, if it has departed far enough away from original parents, be misidentified as a species in its own right?
Lets do a bit of a cse study on Aust Natives. Den. Tarberri crossed with Den. Rex. You will notice I am using new naming as that really does suit my purpose (it shows how ridiculous it is!!) You now have an interspecies cross by modern standards. Now cross the progeny back to Den. Tarberri. Now, depending on the outcome (cane size etc), try and prove it isn't straight Tarberri or Rex. Now cross that hybrid with Den. Kingianum. You'll have a natural hybrid called specio-kingianum but it's actually made up of 3 species. Just food for thought. Have fun!! Regards Paul Wheeler _______________________________________________ the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD) orchids@orchidguide.com http://orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids_orchidguide.com
