Birgid Schlindwein's
Hypermedia Glossary Of Genetic Terms
Search Results
Birgid Schlindwein'sHypermedia Glossary Of Genetic TermsSearch Results |
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| Homoplasy | Appearance of similar structures in organisms not inherited from a common ancestor or developed from a common anlage. Indication for the universal mechanisms of evolution The term includes convergence, parallelism, and reversal. |
| Anlage | Embryonic primordium from which a specific part of the organism develops. The rudimentary basis of an organ in an embryo. |
| Evolution | In Darwinian terms a gradual change in phenotypic frequencies in a population that results in individuals with improved reproductive success. |
| Convergence | The evolutionary development of similar external morphological traits in organisms which are unrelated (except through distant ancestors) as each adapts to a similar way of life and/or environment. Sharks (fish), dolphins (mammals), and ichthyosaurs (extinct reptiles) provide good examples of convergent adaptation to the aquatic habitat. |
| Parallelism | Occurence of the same of similar structures independently evolved in two or more lineages, that may be but must not be related to another. |
| Reversal | Resemblance between two taxa because one of them has evolved a new character, then lost it again, and the other taxon has never evolved it. |