Lines of Evidence for Evolution

Evidence for Evolution Day 4

Comparative Anatomy and Comparative Embryology

Multiple Choice

Which of these descriptions is an example of an unused body structure/vestigial structure?

• a bat’s wing that enables it to fly

• the tiny leg bones found in snakes that have no legs

• the front legs of a dog that supports its weight as it walks and runs

• the tentacles of an octopus that aid it in movement and catching prey

Multiple Choice

The bones in the forelimbs of three mammals are shown above. For these mammals, the number, position, and shape of the bones most likely indicates that they may have

• developed in a common environment

• identical genetic makeup

• developed from the same earlier species

• identical methods of obtaining food

Multiple Choice

The presence of pelvic bones in the baleen whale is evidence of which of the following?

• Whales can travel on land when necessary.

• Whales are developing into animals with four functioning limbs.

• Whales evolved from four-legged animals.

• Whales have functional legs that are hidden by fat and skin.

Multiple Choice

Structures with the same parts have different functions; suggests that organisms share a common ancestry

• vestigial structures

• homologous structures

• adaptive radiation

• fossil

Multiple Choice

What is suggested by the similarity of early embryos of different species of vertebrates?

• A recent common ancestry

• Evolution from a distant common ancestor

• Similar environments in the past

• No evolutionary relationship between the groups