as a change in an individual's phenotype in response to an environmental challenge
Which model of evolution shows change over a relatively short period of time
1. species 2. speciation 3.traits 4.selective 5.adaptation 6.natural 7.vestigial 8.fossils 9.mutation. Darwin's legacy: evolution
It shows that the organism once had a fully functioning organ/structure, but due to some kind of environmental pressure, that organ was no longer beneficial. Because it was no longer beneficial, it was actually detrimental, because the organism required energy to grow these organs, now wasted energy. Evolution's mechanism is natural selection. This organ is now being selected against, organisms that grew smaller ones now had an advantage over ones with larger ones. So over time, the average size of that organ within the population will shrink, and it will be considered vestigial when it no longer serves its original function. There's a reason why vestigial organs do not disappear completely, and that's because when the organ is so small and the organism is not wasting as much energy to grow it, it is no longer being selected against. Or in some cases the vestigial organ does have a tiny bit of use and is now beneficial.
The veriform appendix is one. It is thought that, at one point this process had a function, but becamse vestigial as a result of evolution. Another would be wisdom teeth.
Part 1: Evidence from the Fossil RecordPart 2: Evidence from Geographic Distribution of Living SpeciesPart 3: Evidence from Homologous Structures and Vestigial OrgansPart 4: Evidence from Embryologymore: What_are_the_four_pieces_of_evidence_for_evolution
Vestigial
Which model of evolution shows change over a relatively short period of time
Vestigial means a very small remnant of something once larger. The appendix is a vestigial organ. Some people are born with vestigial tails.
Vestigial StructureA vestigial structure is a structure that appears to no longer have a use in the body.
Vestigial organs is the term referring to useless organs left from evolution.
Vestigial structures are remnants of features that were functional in the ancestors of a given species but are no longer useful in the current species. This supports the idea of evolution as it suggests that species have evolved over time from ancestors with different anatomical features. The presence of vestigial structures provides evidence of common ancestry and the gradual changes that have occurred over time through the process of evolution.
Vestigial StructureA vestigial structure is a structure that appears to no longer have a use in the body.
The appendix is the best example of a vestigial organ.
A vestigial is an organ that serves no useful function in an organism.
Body parts that are reduced in size with no apparent function would be vestigial limbs. Evolution could be at the root of the development of vestigial limbs. A good example would be a T-Rex with his tiny arms.
Vestigial organs/limbs mean that there was an ancestor of the creature that once had non-vestigial, usable organs/limbs. This implys that the creature evolved from something that once needed such organs/limbs to survive, but now the species no longer needs the vestigial organ/limbs and it has lost it's use/size.
Vestigiality describes homologous characters of organisms that have seemingly lost all or most of their original function in a species through evolution. A penguin uses its wings to 'fly' underwater, the animal being aqua-dynamic; an eagle uses its wings to fly in air, the animal being aerodynamic. Neither sets of wings are vestigial structures.