Climate change threatens biodiversity, but the transfer of genes between species via hybridization can enhance climate resilience. This research demonstrates that hybrid mountain birds show reduced climate vulnerability, highlighting how maintaining natural gene flow can mitigate extinction risks and is crucial for conserving species with narrow environmental tolerances.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals
Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription
$32.99 / 30 days
cancel any time
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $21.58 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on SpringerLink
- Instant access to the full article PDF.
USD 39.95
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
References
Scheffers, B. R. et al. The broad footprint of climate change from genes to biomes to people. Science 354, aaf7671 (2016). A review on the pervasive effects of climate change across all biological levels, from individual organisms to entire ecosystems.
Rahbek, C. et al. Building mountain biodiversity: geological and evolutionary processes. Science 365, 1114–1119 (2019). A foundational review on the geological and evolutionary processes that generate and sustain extraordinary biodiversity in mountain ecosystems.
Brauer, C. J. et al. Natural hybridization reduces vulnerability to climate change. Nat. Clim. Change 13, 282–289 (2023). This study provides empirical evidence that natural hybridization can reduce vulnerability to climate change in threatened tropical fish.
Chen, Y. et al. The combination of genomic offset and niche modelling provides insights into climate change-driven vulnerability. Nat. Commun. 13, 4821 (2022). This paper demonstrates an integrative framework that combines ecogenomics, species distribution modelling and landscape genetics to evaluate population-level vulnerability to climate change.
Additional information
Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
This is a summary of: Zhang, S. et al. Hybridization mitigates climate change risk in mountainous birds. Nat. Clim. Change https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-025-02485-w (2025).
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Gene flow between mountainous birds buffers climate change risk. Nat. Clim. Chang. 15, 1281–1282 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-025-02500-0
Published:
Version of record:
Issue date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-025-02500-0
