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The two animals pictured are not closely related - HSC - SSCE Biology - Question 15 - 2005 - Paper 1
Question 15
The two animals pictured are not closely related. They burrow and live most of their life underground. Australian marsupial mole (Notoryctes caurinus) European pla... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:The two animals pictured are not closely related - HSC - SSCE Biology - Question 15 - 2005 - Paper 1
Step 1
They have evolved similar structures in response to similar environmental conditions.
Answer
The Australian marsupial mole and the European placental mole have both adapted to similar underground environments, leading to the evolution of analogous structures such as body shape and digging limbs. This is a clear example of convergent evolution, where unrelated species develop similar traits due to adaptation to similar environmental challenges.