NEET BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -To look different from other species. To be able to eat the food readily available in the environment. To protect itself against predators.

Detailed explanation-2: -Birds that are a part of the same species have different characteristics to help them survive. The different shaped beaks picked up certain types of food better than others. This is the result in physical characteristics in the same species working to give the birds an advantage in their environment.

Detailed explanation-3: -Different species of finches have different shapes and sizes of beaks because they have different versions of genes. Individuals with particular beak shapes and sizes are better able to obtain and eat certain types of foods on the island.

Detailed explanation-4: -After the drought of 1977, researchers on the island of Daphne Major hypothesized that medium ground finches that had large, deep beaks, survived better than those with smaller beaks because they could more easily crack and eat the tough Tribulus cistoides fruits.

Detailed explanation-5: -In particular, changes to the size and shape of the beaks have enabled the different species to specialise in different types of food: seeds, insects, cactus flowers and fruits or even bird blood. The Galápagos finches are a classic example of adaptive radiation.