Question

Answer in 3 to 5 sentences:
What are analogous organs? Give an example.

Answer 1

Hint:- The process of evolution is a continuous process that causes accumulation of different types of changes in an organism. The course of evolution is continuous and the living organisms are always exposed to changing conditions. These changing conditions are responsible for adapting certain changes such as structural, behavioral and physiological.

Complete step-by-step solution
The independent evolution which occurs in the species of organism consisting of similar features within different periods of time is known as convergent evolution. The process of convergent evolution takes place through epoch or long durations of time in the evolutionary history of organisms. In the process of convergent evolution, several similar forms of structures are developed which were not present in the last common groups of ancestors and the structures are known as analogous structures.
Analogous structures or organs are the structures that are developed in the course of evolution and are similar in structure or function but they are not derived from a common ancestor or ancestral groups. The analogous organs are developed in response to the different conditions that an organism is exposed through the process of evolution. The organs of flight are present across different species of organisms such as insects, bats, pterosaurs and birds. The flight organs of these species are functionally similar but are derived independently. The organs have evolved independently and thus are not related to each other. Though the organs are functionally similar in nature, their development occurred as a result of convergent evolution.
The analogous organs are the result of convergent evolution and are similar to the parallel evolution. In this process, the species which are unrelated in nature evolve in the similar direction and in this process, they acquire similar characteristics. The developed characters are independently acquired and are not related to the other organs. The important reason for development of the analogous organs can be also due to the reason that when different organisms live in similar habitats or similar environments, they are subjected to similar conditions. These factors are also considered an important reason for formation of analogous structures or organs.

Note:-
Analogous organs are the structures or organs that do not share the common ancestry but they are related in the functionality. These organs perform the same types of functions and are not related with structures from other species but have arisen independently. The most common example of analogous organs is the presence of wings in different organisms such as birds, pterosaurs, bats as well as insects. The wings present in all these organisms are related to flight but are not related to each other and nor the development is similar.