Question

If you discovered a fossil of an extinct mammal that lived high in the Andes, would you predict that it would more closely resemble present-day mammals from South American jungles or present-day mammals that live high in Asian mountains? Explain.

Short answer

The fossil mammal species that lived in the Andes are more closely related to present-day South American mammals than Asian mammals.

Step-by-step solution

Mammals

The term mammals refer to the members of higher vertebrates in which the mother (female species) produces milk through her mammary gland to feed and nourish the young.

The characteristic features of mammals involve mammary glands, fur-covered bodies, uterus, neocortex, birth to their offspring, and sweat glands. The deer, apes, humans, bears, bats, and carnivores are some examples of mammals.

Convergent evolution

The evolutionary biological concept in which similarities evolve in unrelated species that develop similar functions performed by distinct structures is called convergent evolution. These structures with similar functions develop due to species adaptation in a similar environment.

Adapting marine mammals in the aquatic environment that share phenotypic characteristics is an example of convergent evolution.

Andes fossil species

The traces of organisms that were once living are preserved within the earth’s crust, and these preserved remains are recorded to provide evidence of prehistoric times called fossils.

The Andes fossil species and South American mammals resemble each other due to the common sharing of their ancestor. Both species hail from the mountain range found in the geographical region of South America.