Evidence of Evolution interactive worksheet - Free Printable

Problem Overview:

The task involves matching key terms related to evolutionary biology with corresponding images and using the provided words to describe those images. The key terms are:

1. Evolution
2. Analogous structure
3. Vestigial structure
4. Homologous structure

The images provided include:
- A whale with a leg bone.
- Diagrams of limbs from different animals (cat, horse, bat, dolphin).
- Different species of Geospiza finches.
- Bird wing, bat wing, and insect wing.

Additionally, there is a word bank with two terms: homologous structure and analogous structure. These need to be used to describe the pictures of bird wings, insect wings, a whale, and a frog.

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Solution:

#### Step 1: Match Key Terms with Images

1. Evolution:
- Evolution refers to the process by which organisms change over time through genetic variation and natural selection. This concept is best represented by the image of the Geospiza finches. The finches show variations in beak shapes adapted to different food sources, illustrating evolutionary changes.

2. Analogous structure:
- Analogous structures are body parts that have similar functions but evolved independently in different lineages. They come from different body plans during development. The image showing bird wings, bat wings, and insect wings represents analogous structures because these wings serve the same function (flight) but evolved separately in birds, bats, and insects.

3. Vestigial structure:
- Vestigial structures are remnants of features that were functional in ancestral species but have lost their original function in descendant species. The image of the whale with a leg bone represents a vestigial structure because whales descended from land-dwelling ancestors that had legs, but modern whales no longer use them for locomotion.

4. Homologous structure:
- Homologous structures are body parts that share a common ancestry and origin but may have different functions today. They come from the same body plan during development. The image showing limbs of a cat, horse, bat, and dolphin represents homologous structures because these limbs share a common ancestral origin (tetrapod limb) but have evolved to serve different functions (walking, running, flying, swimming).

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#### Step 2: Describe the Pictures Using the Word Bank

1. Bird Wings, Insect Wings:
- These are analogous structures because they perform the same function (flight) but evolved independently in different groups (birds and insects). They come from different body plans during development.

2. Whale:
- The whale's leg bone is a vestigial structure because it is a remnant of a structure that was functional in ancestral land-dwelling mammals but is no longer used for walking in modern whales.

3. Frog:
- The frog's limbs are homologous structures because they share a common ancestral origin with the limbs of other tetrapods (e.g., cats, horses, bats, dolphins). They come from the same body plan during development.

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Final Answers:

#### Matching Key Terms with Images:
1. Evolution: Geospiza finches.
2. Analogous structure: Bird wings, bat wings, insect wings.
3. Vestigial structure: Whale with a leg bone.
4. Homologous structure: Limbs of a cat, horse, bat, and dolphin.

#### Describing the Pictures:
1. Bird Wings, Insect Wings: Analogous structure.
2. Whale: Vestigial structure.
3. Frog: Homologous structure.

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Final Answer Box:

\[
\boxed{
\begin{array}{l}
\text{1. Evolution: Geospiza finches} \\
\text{2. Analogous structure: Bird wings, bat wings, insect wings} \\
\text{3. Vestigial structure: Whale with a leg bone} \\
\text{4. Homologous structure: Limbs of a cat, horse, bat, and dolphin} \\
\text{5. Bird Wings, Insect Wings: Analogous structure} \\
\text{6. Whale: Vestigial structure} \\
\text{7. Frog: Homologous structure}
\end{array}
}
\]