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Comparative anatomy
 
 
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Comparative anatomy is the study of similarities and differences in the anatomy
Anatomy

Anatomy is a branch of biology that is the consideration of the body plan. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy and plant anatomy ....
 of organism
Organism

In biology, an organism is any life thing . In at least some form, all organisms are capable of response to stimulus , reproduction, growth and developmental biology, and maintenance of homeostasis as a stable whole....
s. It is closely related to evolutionary biology
Evolutionary biology

Evolutionary biology is a sub-field of biology concerned with the origin of species from a common descent and descent of species, as well as their evolution, multiplication and diversity over time....
 and phylogeny (the evolution
Evolution

In biology, evolution is change in the heritability trait of a population of organisms from one generation to the next. These changes are caused by a combination of three main processes: variation, reproduction, and selection....
 of species).

major concepts of comparative anatomy are:
  1. Homologous structures
    Homology (biology)

    In evolutionary biology, homology refers to any similarity between characteristics that is due to their common descent. The word homologous derives from the ancient Greek ??????e??, 'to agree'....
     - structures (body parts/anatomy) which are similar in different species because the species have common descent
    Common descent

    A group of organisms is said to have common descent if they have a common ancestor. In modern biology, it is generally accepted that all living organisms on Earth are descended from a common ancestor or ancestral gene pool....
    . They may or may not perform the same function. An example is the forelimb structure shared by cat
    Cat

    The cat , also known as the Domestication cat or house cat to distinguish it from other Felinae and Felidae, is a small predationy carnivore species of crepuscular mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and its ability to hunt vermin, snakes, scorpions, and other unwanted household pests....
    s and whales.
  2. Analogous structures
    Analogy (biology)

    Two structures in biology are said to be analogous if they perform the same or similar function by a similar mechanism but evolved separately....
     - structures which are similar in different organisms because they evolved in a similar environment, rather than were inherited from a recent common ancestor.






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    Encyclopedia


    Comparative anatomy is the study of similarities and differences in the anatomy
    Anatomy

    Anatomy is a branch of biology that is the consideration of the body plan. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy and plant anatomy ....
     of organism
    Organism

    In biology, an organism is any life thing . In at least some form, all organisms are capable of response to stimulus , reproduction, growth and developmental biology, and maintenance of homeostasis as a stable whole....
    s. It is closely related to evolutionary biology
    Evolutionary biology

    Evolutionary biology is a sub-field of biology concerned with the origin of species from a common descent and descent of species, as well as their evolution, multiplication and diversity over time....
     and phylogeny (the evolution
    Evolution

    In biology, evolution is change in the heritability trait of a population of organisms from one generation to the next. These changes are caused by a combination of three main processes: variation, reproduction, and selection....
     of species).

    Description

    Two major concepts of comparative anatomy are:
    1. Homologous structures
      Homology (biology)

      In evolutionary biology, homology refers to any similarity between characteristics that is due to their common descent. The word homologous derives from the ancient Greek ??????e??, 'to agree'....
       - structures (body parts/anatomy) which are similar in different species because the species have common descent
      Common descent

      A group of organisms is said to have common descent if they have a common ancestor. In modern biology, it is generally accepted that all living organisms on Earth are descended from a common ancestor or ancestral gene pool....
      . They may or may not perform the same function. An example is the forelimb structure shared by cat
      Cat

      The cat , also known as the Domestication cat or house cat to distinguish it from other Felinae and Felidae, is a small predationy carnivore species of crepuscular mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and its ability to hunt vermin, snakes, scorpions, and other unwanted household pests....
      s and whales.
    2. Analogous structures
      Analogy (biology)

      Two structures in biology are said to be analogous if they perform the same or similar function by a similar mechanism but evolved separately....
       - structures which are similar in different organisms because they evolved in a similar environment, rather than were inherited from a recent common ancestor. They usually serve the same or similar purposes. An example is the torpedo body shape of porpoise
      Porpoise

      Porpoises are small cetaceans of the family Phocoenidae; they are related to whales and dolphins. They are distinct from dolphins, although the word "porpoise" has been used to refer to any small dolphin, especially by sailors and fishermen....
      s and shark
      Shark

      Sharks are a type of fish with a full Cartilage skeleton and a highly Streamlines, streaklines and pathlinesd body. They respire with the use of five to seven gill slits....
      s. It evolved in a water environment, but the animals have different ancestors.


    The rules for development of special characteristics which differ significantly from general homology were listed by Karl Ernst von Baer
    Karl Ernst von Baer

    Karl Ernst von Baer was a Baltic German biologist and a founding father of embryology....
     (the Baer laws).

    History

    Edward Tyson
    Edward Tyson

    Edward Tyson was a British scientist and physician, commonly regarded as the founder of comparative anatomy, which compares the anatomy between species....
     is regarded as the founder of comparative anatomy. He is credited with determining that marine mammals are, in fact, mammals. Also, he concluded that chimpanzee
    Chimpanzee

    Chimpanzee, sometimes colloquially known as a chimp, is the common name for the two Extant taxon species of ape in the genus Pan where the Congo River forms the boundary between the native habitat of the two species:...
    s are more similar to humans than to monkey
    Monkey

    A monkey is a nonhuman primate mammal with the exception usually of the lemurs and tarsiers. More specifically, the term monkey refers to a subset of monkeys: any of the smaller longer-tailed catarrhine or platyrrhine primates as contrasted with the apes....
    s because of their arms. Marco Aurelio Severino
    Marco Aurelio Severino

    Marco Aurelio Severino was an Italy surgery and anatomist....
     also compared various animals, including birds, in his Zootomia democritaea, one of the first works of comparative anatomy.

    See also

    • Cladistics
      Cladistics

      Cladistics is the hierarchical classification of species based on evolutionary ancestry. Cladistics is distinguished from other taxonomic systems because it focuses on evolution rather than similarities between species, and because it places heavy emphasis on objective, quantitative analysis....
    • Phylogenetics
      Phylogenetics

      In biology, phylogenetics is the study of evolutionary relatedness among various groups of organisms , which is discovered through molecular sequencing data and morphological data matrices....