Maharashtra State Board: Class 10
CISCE: Class 12
Definition: Connecting Link
An organism that exhibits morphological or anatomical characteristics of two different groups, indicating an evolutionary relationship between them, is called a connecting link.
or
Connecting links are organisms that possess characteristics of two different groups of animals and thus provide evidence that one group has evolved from the other.
Maharashtra State Board: Class 10
CISCE: Class 12
Key Points: Connecting Link
- Connecting links are organisms that show features of two different groups, indicating evolutionary relationships.
- Examples include lungfish (link between fishes and amphibians), duck-billed platypus (link between reptiles and mammals), and Peripatus (link between annelids and arthropods).
- These organisms show transitional features, combining traits of both ancestral and descendant groups.
- Connecting links provide strong evidence for evolution, proving continuity and gradual change between major groups of organisms.
