Convergent evolution is the development of similar features (analogous structures) in unrelated organisms because they live in similar environments and face similar needs. Dogfish (a cartilaginous fish) and whale (a mammal) are not closely related, but both live in water and have evolved a similar streamlined body and paddle-like fins/flippers for swimming. Rat and dog are both mammals with common ancestry (their similarities are homologous). Bacterium and protozoan, and starfish and cuttlefish, do not show such similar adaptations. So convergent evolution is illustrated by dogfish and whale.
ConceptConvergent evolution in aquatic animals
Evolution in past papers
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