What is adaptive radiation ? When can adaptive radiation be referred to as convergent evolution ? Give an example.
The process of evolution that starts from a single point and radiates in different directions is called adaptive radiation. Adaptive radiation can be referred to as convergent evolution if more than one adaptive radiation occurs in an isolated geographical area. Example: Australian marsupials and placental mammals show convergent evolution. Australian marsupials evolve from a single ancestor and placental mammals exhibit similarities with their corresponding marsupials such as placental wolves and Tasmanian wolves.