What are examples of evolutionary adaptations in animals?

Snakes lost their legs to fit into underground spaces, mice grew large ears to hear predators at night, and giraffes developed long necks to reach the leaves on tall trees and bend down to drink water.

What is a good example of evolution?

One example is the evolution of the horse. The horse can be traced to an animal the size of a dog having several toes on each foot and teeth appropriate for browsing; this animal, called the dawn horse (genus Hyracotherium), lived more than 50 million years ago.

What animal has evolved over time?

Scientists have pinned down the fastest-known evolving animal — a “living dinosaur” called a tuatara. The tuatara, Sphendon punctatus, resembles a lizard and is found only in New Zealand.

What is a recent example of evolution?

Blue eyes are another recent-evolved trait and scientists have determined it came from a mutation in a single ancestor 6,000-10,000 years ago. The mutation affected the OCA2 gene, which codes the protein necessary for producing melanin, which gives our skin, hair and eyes their color.

What is evolution in animals?

Animals evolved through a process known as evolution which is the change in a species’ characteristics over several generations. Evolution can be caused by mutation, migration, natural selection, genetic drift, and non-random mating.

Is a Butterfly an example of evolution?

Butterflies show origin of species as an evolutionary process, not a single event. The evolution of new species might not be as hard as it seems, even when diverging populations remain in contact and continue to produce offspring.

What examples of evolution do we see today?

Stray dogs that have left human care are evolving more wolf-life traits. Although dogs separated from their wolf ancestor around 18,000 years ago, several new groups of pups that are more genetically similar to wolves have begun to show up around the world sometime within the past 150 years.