BIOLOGY
BIOLOGY
12th Edition
ISBN: 9781260169614
Author: Raven
Publisher: RENT MCG
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Chapter 45, Problem 4S

If natural selection favors the evolution of wings in different types of vertebrates, why didn’t it produce structures that were built in the same way?

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Ostrich wings are vestigial because they are too rudimentary to perform the function for which they evolved in the species’ flying ancestor. Nonetheless, the ostrich uses its wings for other purposes. For example, an ostrich may extend its wings to the side while running, to help maintain balance, and it may spread its wings as part of a threat display. These uses show that evolution by natural selection can sometimes repurpose vestigial structures that have lost the function for which they originally evolved. But whether a vestigial structure remains useless or acquires a new function, it is homologous to the version that retains its original function in other organisms and provides evidence of common ancestry. But are all similarities between different organisms the result of shared ancestry?
Flight in birds developed over time due to multiple evolutionary steps. The development of feathers, hollow bones, large flight muscles, and efficient gas exchange was vital for flight. Describe the order in which these adaptations likely evolved and explain your reasoning.
Although most salamanders have four legs, a few species that live in shallow water lack hind limbs and have extremely tiny forelimbs (see photograph).Develop a hypothesis to explain how limbless salamanders came about according to Darwin’s mechanism of evolution by natural selection. How could you test your hypothesis?
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