Name three examples of adaptive radiation, and provide a brief statement about each one. a) Domestic dogs – There are over 300 distinct dog breeds. Cows – There are over 800 cow breeds recognized worldwide. Domestic cats – Cats have changed drastically in just a few thousand years.
b) Whales and fish – Although it has been roughly 400 million years since fish and mammals diverged, whales and fish are morphologically similar. Birds and butterflies – Although the common ancestor between vertebrates and insects lived even longer ago than the common ancestor between whales and fish, birds and butterflies both developed flight. Rabbits and kangaroos – Although it has been over 150 million years since their divergence, rabbits and kangaroos both developed powerful jumping legs.
c) Hawaiian silverswords-There are about 30 species evolved from one parent species. Madagascar lemurs-Their common ancestor likely arrived to Madagascar over 60 million years ago. Hawaiian fruit fly-There are 500 species of fruit fly from one parent species.
d) Beetles – There are about 350,000 species of beetles that we know of. Birds – There are almost 10,000 species of birds in existence. Frogs – There are almost 5,000 species of frogs worldwide.