LIFE SCIENCE

OBJECTIVE LIFE SCIENCE

EVOLUTION

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
Although they do not have recent common ancestors, birds and bats have similar body shapes necessary for powered flight. What pattern of evolution does this relation represent
A
divergent evolution
B
convergent evolution
C
vestigial structures
D
coevolution
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -However, the wings of bats and insects have evolved from very different original structures. This phenomenon is called convergent evolution, where similar traits evolve independently in species that do not share a recent common ancestry.

Detailed explanation-2: -Birds and bats have homologous limbs because they are both ultimately derived from terrestrial tetrapods, but their flight mechanisms are only analogous, so their wings are examples of functional convergence.

Detailed explanation-3: -Bird and bat wings are analogous-that is, they have separate evolutionary origins, but are superficially similar because they have both experienced natural selection that shaped them to play a key role in flight. Analogies are the result of convergent evolution.

Detailed explanation-4: -A widespread example of convergent evolution is the evolution of wings and powered flight in birds, bats and (now extinct) pterosaurs, each of which belong to a different class of organism and therefore have very distant common ancestors.

Detailed explanation-5: -Convergent evolution is seen in how distinct species have evolved similar traits in response to a similar environment or pressure due to natural selection. An example of this is the streamlined, bullet-type shape of sharks and dolphins that allows them to swim fast through the water.

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