Determining homology can be difficult because of the acquisition of similar traits in distantly related groups of organisms is also known as convergent evolution.
What is convergent evolution?
- Convergent evolution is the independent evolution of similar traits in species from different periods or epochs.
- Convergent evolution creates similar structures that are similar in form and function but did not exist in the last common ancestor of these groups.
- Organisms have convergent phenotypes, and their similar structural forms are called analogous structures (such as bird wings and bat wings).
- Examples of convergent evolution include the relationship between bat wings and insect wings, shark and dolphin bodies, and vertebrates and cephalopod eyes.
- Similar structures arise by convergent evolution, but homologous structures do not. Convergent evolution at the gene level can result from any of the three processes:
- First, evolution by mutations that occurred independently in different populations or species.
- Second, the evolution of alleles that showed polymorphism in the common ancestral population.
- Third, the development of the introduced allele.
To learn more about convergent evolution, refer
https://brainly.com/question/2990721
#SPJ4
