Evolutionary Anatomy Terms

Question 1

homologous structures/organs

Answer 1

features that have different functions but are structurally similar because of common ancestry

Question 2

vestigial structures/organs

Answer 2

features that seem to serve no function but that resemble structures with functional roles in related organisms (the organisms share common ancestry)

Question 3

analogous structures/organs

Answer 3

structures that have closely related functions but do not derive from same ancestral structure

Question 4

transitional species/fossil

Answer 4

the term given to an organism in the fossil record who exhibits traits common to its hypothesized ancestral group as well as its derived descendant group. a spcies considered to be “in-between” or link species between two related species

Question 5

example of homologous

Answer 5

same skeletal elements make up forelimbs of humans, cats, whales, bats, but functions differ

Question 6

example of vestigial

Answer 6

whales have small hind-leg and foot bones yet have no back flippers to put thm to use, suggesting whales evolved from a walking land mammal of the past

Question 7

example of analogous

Answer 7

birds, bats, moths all have wings but different underlying structures, so its suggested that wings evolved independently in each of these groups