9 Analogous Structures Examples: Detailed Insights

In the world of biology, it is said always evolutionary and thus any there are forms that can be termed to be analogous in its own way.

Any two or more forms in biology that is same in looks or has the same function with yet not being of the equal origin is called to be analogous. Some of the analogous structures examples are-

• Butterfly and bird’s wings
• Bills of duck and platypus
• Water conservation and cactus
• The flippers of the Dolphin and penguins
• Eye for the mammals and the octopus
• Potato and sweet potato
• Bats and bee wing
• Beaks of bird and turtle
• Coloring of the Dolphin and shark
• Shells of turtle and crab

The analogous structures examples are mostly the examples that have evolved separate in two of the independent life form to provide with the same use. The very word analogous comes from the basic word analogy being a device in English that refers to 2 separate things based on its similarities. The analogous structures examples are good correspondence for the evolution type called as convergent.

In this type of evolution, the analogous structures examples are where 2 of the organism are separate and are here to solve the similar problems in evolution like that of keeping itself hidden, conserving of water, swimming, or flying. These analogous structures examples also help in making of body formation that are formed independently.

Analogous structures examples

The wings via the ages of butterfly and birds

There are many creatures that are said to have its own wings. All of the wings have been seen to evolve in order to get the solution for only a single problem being flying.

Yet it is said that wings being an analogous structures examples have been seen to evolve via the whole history for different purposes. The 1^st analogous structures examples tend to be the insects having the same form to help themselves push via the air down to get its body propelled via the air and making it easy for its tiny body to move.

The insects being also an analogous structures examples have seen to use its various body parts in order to have itself fly using parts in the protective exoskeletons to have itself propelled themselves via the air. There are many analogous structures examples that via the million year, have learned to adapt the same thing like the reptiles.

The analogous structures examples have got skin membrane that stretched between the ankle bones and the finger and is also capable of getting itself propelled via the air. After many years as well the dinosaurs being an analogous structures examples have tended to narrow down the approach of flying using feathers they helped them keep itself warm and push into the sky.

Bills of Duck and Platypus

The very 1^st specimen of the platypus was seen in the British museum by the Australian with being simple stuck being a duck’s bill having a beaver like animal.

The truth was much more interesting that getting evolved. The analogous structures examples of platypus had evolved with almost having the same form like that of the ducks to get the problem of accumulating food solved such like that of the aquatic plants and fish in water. These two analogous structures examples are not mostly related to each other.

The duck billed platypus are mostly an animal as well that have analogous structures examples and are mostly small with being much shy animals. They do have a head that is flat and also has a body to have itself glide via the water. They have fur which is mostly dark on the top and is linked to that of the birds and reptile.

These analogous structures examples are not mostly related to each other with platypus being a mammal that have been seen to evolve long later than the birds and also the rest mammals with having different ways to have its path taken by evolution. Yet both of them have developed a good same form to move in water and also land and also both via analogous structures examples.

Water conservation and Cactus

Some of the members of the plant genres are a good analogous structures examples being the Astrophytum and the Euphorbia which look same.

Both of the analogous structures examples have same ball shape body with also being round and having itself divided into 8 of the same length wedges being pointy, hard having thorn that’s stick out in a row along with idle of every wedge. These analogous structures examples help in protecting themselves from eating.

While one seeing it via normal eye shall find it belonging to the same species being analogous structures examples. They can be distinguished by its feature of not being genetically related and also tend to live in 2 complete separate rea in world. Astrophytum is from North America and its example is cactus living in the south part of the western desserts.

On the other hand, the other analogous structures examples being Euphorbia tend to be of the genus that has poinsettias as well with some of the desserts seen in the desserts of Africa. Both of these analogous structures examples are the ones that ted to conserve water by reducing its surface area and also results in being ball round shape and having a thick waxy layer on skin being prickly.

Flippers of Dolphins and penguins

These are a good analogous structures examples for they have same function with being much different in its origin and also thus called so.

With mush research or not, some can say that penguins and dolphins are not linked yet do have same traits that do represent an evolution called as convergent and thus are analogous structures examples. They do just tend to share only one trait which are the flippers and thus are analogous structures examples.

The flippers of penguin are most feathers with mostly being of secondary of primary in its nature and are much these analogous structures examples are much critical to that of its flight with having the flippers feature to be small, short and also much denser. This helps in having a wing that is streamline form and minimizes the underwater drag and has insulation to protect itself.

The flippers of the dolphin being an analogous structures examples are one of the principal feature that controls the cetaceans due to its way in front of the mass center and also has its mobility that makes it three degrees in its freedom. Cetaceams are the porpoises, the whales and the dolphins. The flipper are analogous structures examples and o help them swim being a modified paddle.

Eye of mammals and octopus

This analogous structures examples tend to show the same type of evolution like the rest being the convergent evolution and tend to be analogous as well.

The eye of the mammals and those of the octopus are analogous structures examples and thus also have octopus showing a good evolution for the same usage and thus also have same function. Thus they tend to be analogous structures examples and do thus same a common ancestor with being an evolution.

The octopus has an eye called the camera eye that is same to that of the human’s eye in both type of analysis being embryological and also phylogenetic and thus said that to have the camera eye on its own. It is also an example of analogous structures examples and also for convergent evolution. There is always an entire gene set needed to get this straight.

The eye of the octopus has an iris, with the vitreous cavity, the cells for pigments, the photoreceptor cell and also has a lens that is circular and helps in having the light translated from the part of the retina which is light sensitive and also has its nerve signals that travel along the optic nerve to its brain being same to that of human in its nature and thus also analogous structures examples.

Potato and sweet Potato

Both of these analogous structures examples are said to be much rich in fiber and also has many vitamins like C and B6. Both sweet potato and potatoes are tuberous plants and look more or less similar 

Sweet potato has more of the vitamin A and the potato on the other hand have more potassium with looking alike and thus analogous structures examples. The general potato is white the sweet ones are orange in appearance. Both have brown outside skin making it look the same but doffers in variety.

There are more than about 4000 of the potatoes seen and more than 1000 variety of the sweet ones that around around the globe. Both also tend to grown underground and thus analogous structures examples. Only one common feature of it has been taken to chance of it being the same in appearance. Both also have same function and stores same food.

Both of these analogous structures examples tend to store food in the manner of starch an also differ in its origin of formation and thus the sweet potato is a root tuber with the other analogous structures examples being a stem tuber. Sweet potato is said to be a root modification and also thus have same use but different formation and are thus analogous structures examples.

Bats and bee wing

A great analogous structures examples can be the bat’s wing and a bee’s wing. Bats and bees do not share common ancestry, so the structures cannot be homologous. Both bat wings and bee wings serve a common purpose.

Sometimes it is unclear whether similarities in structure in different organisms are analogous or homologous. An example of this is the wings of bats and birds. These structures are homologous in that they are in both cases modifications of the forelimb bone structure of early reptiles being an analogous structures examples.

Interestingly, though bird and bat wings are analogous as wings, as forelimbs they are homologous. Birds and bats did not inherit wings from a common ancestor with wings, but they did inherit forelimbs from a common ancestor with forelimbs. Analogous since the animals are not closely related, so the wings likely developed independent from each other rather than from a common ancestor thus forming analogous structures examples.

Bat wings are made up of flaps of skin which is stretched between the bones of the fingers and the arm while the wings of bird are made up of feathers extending all along the arm. This dissimilarity in the structure of their wings shows that the wings of the bird and bat are not inherited from a common ancestor thus making analogous structures examples. Bat’s wings are made of a supple, hairless, elastic skin stretching from the edge of the forelimb all the way to the tip of an elongated little finger.

Beaks of bird and turtle

Shells aren’t the turtle’s only analogous structure! Both turtles and tortoises eat with hard beaks that are similar to a bird’s beak, and used for the same purpose: to cut and chew food.

Analogy, in biology, similarity of function and superficial resemblance of structures that have different origins making it analogous structures examples. An analogous pair is a pair of words, numbers or objects that are connected by some rule or by similarity. The word analogy means comparison between two things for the sake of clarification.

For example, a couple names their first child A, their second child as B, their third child as C and so on. This form of evolution is referred to as convergent evolution. Convergent evolution is a kind of evolution wherein organisms evolve structures that have similar or analogous structures or functions in spite of their evolutionary ancestors being very dissimilar or unrelated.

Thus, analogous structures of unrelated species would have similar or corresponding functions although they evolved from different evolutionary origins. Reptilia while birds belong to the Class: Aves. Reptiles have scales all over the body, whereas birds have scales on the legs and the rest of the skin is covered with fluffy feathers. All the present-day reptiles are carnivore, but birds have many different types of food habits.

Coloring of the Dolphin and shark

An interesting example of analogous structures is the shared coloring of sharks and dolphins. Even though these two predators share the same oceanic habitat, they are from different animal classes making a good analogous structures examples

Another example of analogous structures are dolphins and sharks as whole species. Although we might think of dolphins and sharks as being relatively similar, their morphology says otherwise. Dolphins are mammals that have live births and have fins with a homologous structure to human arms. Sharks and dolphins are similar in construction because they need their “parts” to complete many of the same functions.

 Sharks and dolphins are both greyish in color. However, other physical similarities they have include a lighter underside, dorsal fins and located on the back, and pectoral fins is located on their sides. Also, as mentioned above, both dolphins and (most) sharks give birth to live young. Dolphins and sharks both have dorsal fins on their backs, two pectoral fins on their sides, and a tail making it a good analogous structures examples.

Sharks are closely related to rays, and dolphins are closely related to cows and other mammals. Streamlined bodies and fins are traits that dolphins and sharks evolved separately, both as adaptations for swimming. These fish have skeletons of cartilage and streamlined bodies and are among the scariest predators in the sea. Metaphorically, they’re often hustlers talking about the pool shark or other kinds of greedy cheaters.

Shells of turtle and crab

Crab and turtle shells are analogous structures; they evolved from different structures. Crabs and turtles have more differences than similarities. They are not closely related and thus are good analogous structures examples.

Both crabs and turtles have shells that grow from their body and that cannot be removed. The shells protect them from predators and allow them to keep their fleshy bodies safe. Crabs and turtles also both shed the outer layers of their shells during their lifetimes as they grow and thus are good analogous structures examples.

The wings of a bird and of an insect are analogous organs. Both of these species have wings that they use for flight and yet their wings came from dissimilar ancestral origins. Analogous structures are features of different species that are similar in function but not necessarily in structure and which do not derive from a common ancestral feature making it analogous structures examples.

The carapace is the shell on back of the crab that is made of a hard bone called chitin. Chitin is a polymer which is the main component of arthropod’s exoskeletons such as crabs. The exoskeletons of arthropods – crabs, shrimp, lobsters – are largely made up of chitin, a biomaterial.

Conclusion

There are many analogous structures examples with sharing same physical appearance and also yet nor related generically and also not concerned with being of the same use yet the analogous structures examples solve the same function.

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