Canis latrans, Canis lupus, and Canis familiaris are separate species. Ernst Mayr defined species as "groups of interbreeding natural populations that are reproductively isolated from other such groups". The article describes how Canis latrans have been known to interbreed with Canis lupus and Canis familiaris, which, by Mayr's definition, would mean that all three are the same species. However, the article states that the notion that an inability to breed defines what a species is has been abandoned by many scientists. Hybridization is the process of interbreeding from genetically distinct populations to produce a hybrid, and therefore it occurs across different species. This is what is happening when Canis latrans interbreeds with Canis lupus and Canis familiaris. Homo sapeins are hybrids themselves because it has been proven that there was interbreeding among around four species of early humans.
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