Which one of the following pairs correctly represents an example of an

Which one of the following pairs correctly represents an example of analogous organs ?

Forelimb of horse and human arm

Human hands and wings of birds

Wings of birds and wings of insects

Flipper of whale and forelimb of frog

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UPSC CISF-AC-EXE – 2023

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Analogous organs are organs that perform similar functions but have different evolutionary origins and structures. Wings of birds and wings of insects both serve the function of flight, but their underlying structures are fundamentally different. Bird wings are modified forelimbs with bones covered by feathers, while insect wings are chitinous extensions of the body wall, supported by veins. This difference in structure despite similar function makes them analogous organs.

– Analogous organs arise from convergent evolution, where unrelated organisms evolve similar traits due to similar environmental pressures.
– They have similar functions but different basic structures and origins.
– Homologous organs, in contrast, have similar structures and origins (due to common ancestry) but may have different functions.

Examples of homologous organs include the forelimbs of vertebrates (human arm, whale flipper, bat wing, horse leg), which share a common bone structure despite different functions. Examples of analogous organs include the eye of a squid and the eye of a vertebrate, or the spines of a cactus and the spines of a euphorbia.

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