Convergent evolution: examples and definition

Convergent evolution is a mechanism that occurs in living beings where develop structures to master a mediumbut that have a different origin from the one they normally have. All groups have a certain orientation and adaptation to their environment as a result of their origin. But with convergent evolution, animals have been able adapt to different habitats to those of their predecessors to resemble those who are typical of certain habitats.

For example, we know that mammals are land animals that walk on two or four legs. Even so, when there are pressures of the environment, organisms can adapt to it developing structures similar to organisms that do dominate the aquatic environment. This is how we have some special aquatic mammals and other flyers. Later we will present some examples.

The characters that are generated by convergent evolution are called analogous structuresbecause they are analogous to structures from other groups. These characters will be formed by modifications at different levels, for example at the genetic level or molecular level.

Within convergent evolution they can Atavisms occur: They are features that an organism lost and reappeared. These changes can not only occur simultaneously, but it is even more common to occur in different time spaces.

Convergent evolution can occur due to different causes, among which we find:

• Similar conditions in the environment: Organisms that have analogous structures and that are not phylogenetically related to develop in a certain habitat.
• Shared niche: When two species adapt to a particular niche, even if they have different origins. Recall that a niche is a role that plays an organism in an ecosystem.

Now that we have seen the definition of convergent evolution and its causes, we will focus on the examples. Some of the examples of convergent evolution that we can highlight are:

Fins in whales

The whales are mammal animalswhich means that they are similar to us. Its evolutionary predecessor Pakicetus was Similar to a dog: it had four legs and was of terrestrial habits. Due to lack of food he approached bodies of water to feed. With the passage of time, these organisms were entering more and more to the water until they developed fins from their hands.

These are Analogous to the fins of a fishbut they have different origins. Inside, the fins of a whale are composed of “hands” like ours and with the same bones but rearranged, while the fish have radios or thorns. Its tail is also an analogous structure to true fish.

Do not hesitate to take a look at the following articles of Ecology Verde on the types of whales and the evolution of whales to have more information on the subject.

Wings in bats

Bats are also mammals, which means they had no structures to fly. Even so, they managed to become independent from the ground developing some Very large hands with interdigital membranes to form completely functional wings.

Are bats blind? Discover the answer in the following post.

Octopus eyes

The eyes of cephalopods and vertebrates are surprisingly similar. Both have retina, crystalline, nerve fibers and iris. This example is very striking because it is very clear that vertebrates and invertebrates are completely opposite. But the requirement of the octopus to see, managed to develop eyes similar to ours.

Euphorbia and cacti

Cactáceas are the par excellence plants of dry and hot ecosystems. They are originally from America, with talls that are adapted to Store water and require little irrigation To survive. Even so, in Europe there are plants with similar characteristics, such as Euphorbias.

Much of them are succulent plants to store water in their tissues, but are not related to cacti. Some species of this genus adapted to the conditions of its environment to have similar characters to cacti such as the Development of thorns and tissues To retain water.

Proteases

At the molecular level we also have examples of convergent evolution. Proteases are chemical reactions catalysts within organisms and are present in all living beings. Although the dynamics of proteins are not closely related to the requirements at the molecular level.

Canids and wolves of Tasmania

We know well the structure of the canids: they have four long legs, a medium height and a well -defined snout head and sharp fangs. We also know that They are placental mammals. If you have seen a photograph of the Wolf of Tasmania Thylacinus cynocephaluswhich was recently extinguished, you might think that it is also a canid for its body structure.

The truth is that it is a marsupial wolf, which means that the females had a marsupio where they kept their young to breastfeed them until they ended their development. These tilacinos evolved to cover the predatory niche of the canids.

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