Again we underestimate the ancients.
Millenia before the famous work of Gregor Mendel (1822-1884) with peas, human beings were engaged in genetic engineering.
Cabbage, broccoli, brussels sprouts and cauliflower do not grow in the wild. They only grow in gardens.
They are all and only variations of one and the same plant, wild mustard or wild cabbage (same plant). Centuries before Jesus, human beings separated these out by isolating those with largest leaves (kale), largest flowers (cauliflower), largest stems (kohlrabi), and so forth.
They are all the same species. If planted near each other in a garden, they will cross-pollinate and hybridize, and after a few generations one will be back to the original plant that does grow in the wild.
The same thing can be done with fish. A few generations of selective breeding can produce a goldfish with exceptionally fancy fins.
I have no idea if such fins are adaptive in the wild.
Again, a few generations of allowing them to mate freely, will bring one back to the same old plain-finned goldfish that one finds in pet stores.
Isn’t nature wonderful?
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