For those who do not know what the convergence of biology, it should be clarified that the term has come to us from the Latin and it means "rapprochement".It should be noted that this definition is used not only in biology, but also in linguistics, telecommunications, and even in political science.That is why it should be understood that the convergence - it is a certain similarity of traits in organisms that are dissimilar in nature, which arose in the context of evolution.As a result of this process, they have a certain number of similar features (such as the appearance, the structure of organs).
Many people know that the way of convergence emerged, for example, streamlined shark, dolphins, flying marsupials membrane protein, and flying squirrels.If we talk about the evolutionary form of groups of living organisms, that are allocated convergence and divergence, and parallelism.
irreversibility of the evolutionary process
In the evolution of each body passed a certain stage in its development, and this applies to absolutely all structural components.And if convergence - is the "similarity", it is necessary to consider deepening and other concepts.
1. Divergence - these are the signs of differences that exist within a particular species.This biological process leading to the emergence of new groups and individuals.The more pronounced divergence, the greater the difference becomes a particular kind, with the result that the body begins to differ not only in appearance but also in the internal structure, on the environment and especially the choice of space for existence.And one area can choose only those who can survive in the environment.Due to the fact that the key concept of evolution is natural selection, only the strongest species survive and the weaker - die.
2. Convergence - is, first of all, the phenomenon is the opposite of divergence.In this case, various organisms begin to acquire similar forms.Often this is due to the same habitat, its basic terms and features.It should be noted that the phenomenon of convergence is most common in the animal world, where, for example, a bird can not do without wings, the fish should be streamlined shape and so on.
3. Parallelism - in Greek language this concept means "the next step".This development in the context of the evolution of similar groups that are genetically close, but the acquisition of similarities among these representatives are not independent of each other.Almost always, these features are inherited from ancestors.Given that convergence - is the similarities that are gradually emerging from a certain dependency, concurrency is due directly to the historical process (in particular, we are talking about the phylogeny).
Why are there convergence phenomenon
When considering the basic concepts in the context of evolution has been said that the convergence - is part of a phenomenon that is inherent in the main representatives of the animal world.Naturally, the divergence and parallelism is often found in nature.But the need for convergence can not be denied because the causes of these similarities are not determined by the presence of kinship, and a specific set of symptoms that had developed in the evolutionary process to one or another kind of living organisms survived and became stronger.
So the main reason for convergence is the direct similarity of ecological niches inhabited by certain representatives of the animal world.If you view the most popular examples of convergent similarities, we can understand why certain kinds of organisms have representatives of some concrete form, appearance, and certain features of lifestyle.
