Concept explainers
To determine: The ways by which the characteristic differences between aquatic and terrestrial environments affect the early evolution of tetrapods.
Introduction: The basic differences that animals are required to accommodate while moving from water to land are oxygen content and density. The temperature regulation and habitat diversity are also the physical differences that animals should accommodate.
Explanation of Solution
The characteristics of ancestral tetrapods that made possible evolution of breathing and support on land include internal nares, air-filled cavity, and paired limbs. Moreover, the adaptations to air-breathing, such as increased vascularization of the air-filled cavity along with high capillary network and double circulation, also influenced the evolution of tetrapods.
The development of limbs, along with the proper structural support, affected the early evolution of tetrapods. Temperature regulation was one of the main factors that supported evolution. This is because the air fluctuates in temperature relatively more on land than in water. Moreover, habitat diversity and less competition provided better survival chances on land than in water.
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INTEG.PRIN.OF ZOOLOGY(LL)
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