They would be created through the process of lateral gene transfer, in which microbes incorporate loose bits of genetic material from other microbes into their own. (discovermagazine.com)
But evidence is piling up that wholesale exchanges of genetic material — called lateral gene transfers — can quickly create entirely new species. (sciencemag.org)
It had been assumed that such lateral gene transfers were uncommon, but their existence in arthropods, the largest animal phylum, suggests that such transfers may be a significant evolutionary mechanism. (discovermagazine.com)