INTRODUCTION

• There is an enormous number and types of living

organisms on this earth. An important question arises;
How and from where has such a great variety of living
organisms come to exist on this earth? Also, how the
human beings have evolved on this earth? All these
questions are studied in the branch of biology called
Evolution. The word ‘evolution’ has been derived from
Latin word ‘evolvere’ which means to unfold.
 DEFINITION
• Evolution is the sequence of gradual changes which take
place in the primitive organisms over millions of years in
which new species are produced.

• Since the evolution is of the living organisms so it is

called organic evolution.
 EVIDENCES FOR ORGANIC
EVOLUTION
• Some of the important sources which provide
evidences for organic evolution are:
• Fossils
• Homologous organs
• Vestigial organs
• Analogous organs
• Embryology
 Fossils
• Fossils provide evidence for evolution-The remains or
{impressions} of dead animals or plants that lived in the
remote past are known as fossils.

• For example, a fossil bird called Archaeopteryx looks like

a bird but it has many other features which are found in
the reptiles.
• Archaeopteryx is a connecting link between the reptiles
and birds and hence suggests that the birds have
evolved from the reptiles.
• Thus, fossils provide the evidence that the present
animals and plants have originated from the previously
existing ones through the process of evolution.
 Homologous organs
• Homologous organs provide evidence for evolution-
Those organs which have the same basic structure [or
some basic design] but different functions are called
homologous organs.

• For example, the fore limbs of a frog, a bird and a man

seem to be built from the same basic design of bones
[as shown in the figure], but they perform different
functions :the forelimbs of a frog are used to prop up the
front end of its body when at rest and also act as shock
absorbers when the frog lands back on the ground after
a leap; the forelimbs of a bird are modified for flying
whereas the forelimbs of a man are used for eating,
writing and many other functions.
• Since the forelimbs of a
frog, a bird and a man
have similar structures
but perform different
functions, they are the
homologous organs. It
tells us that a frog, a bird
and a man, all have
evolved from a common
ancestor.

• Thus, the presence of

homologous organs in
different animals provides
evidence for evolution.
 Vestigial organs
• Vestigial organs are the organs
which have disappeared as they
were having little/no vital function
in the body.
• Vestigial organs are actually the
functionless remnants of the once
functioning organs

• The nictitating membrane in

humans (which is present as a
small fold of skin in the corner of
the eye) is a vestigial organ but
nictitating membrane is still
functioning in birds, and provide
protection to their eyes
• Another vestigial organ in
humans is the appendix, a
narrow tube attached to the
large intestine. In some plant-
eating mammals, the appendix
is a functioning organ that
helps to digest plant material.
In humans, however, the
organ lacks this purpose and is
considerably reduced in size,
serving only as a minor source
of certain white blood cells that
guard against infection.
• This indicates that human
beings may have evolved from
such mammals which had a
functional appendix in them.
• The skeletons of humans,
for instance, retain
evidence of a tail-like
structure that is probably
a relic from previous
mammalian ancestors.

• This feature, called the

coccyx, or more
commonly, the tailbone,
has little apparent
function in modern
humans. Relic features
such as the coccyx are
called vestigial organs.
 Analogous organs
• Those organs which have
different basic structure but
have similar appearance and
perform similar functions are
called analogous organs.

• For example, the wings of an

insect and a bird have
different structure but they
perform the same function of
flying.
• Now, since the analogous organs have different basic
design, so they do not indicate a common ancestor for
the organism. Though they are not derived from common
ancestors, they can still evolve to perform similar
functions to survive, flourish and keep on evolving in the
prevailing environment.

• The analogous organs actually provide a mechanism for

evolution.
 Embryology

• A study of the development of the embryo of an animal is

called embryology.

• A study of the development of the embryos of the

different vertebrate animals shows striking similarities in
their structure.
• In fact the embryos of the
different vertebrate
animals are so similar in
their early stages of
development that it is
difficult to distinguish one
from the other.
• We can see from fig. that
the embryos of different
vertebrate animals like
fish, chick and human
resemble so much in their
initial stages of
development that it is
very difficult to distinguish
one from the other.