Over time, the lineage that led to modern whales shows a change from four-limbed land animals to aquatic animals with two limbs that function as flippers. This change is best explained by
A) an emergent property.
B) reductionism.
C) the hierarchy of the biological organization of life.
D) natural selection.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The best explanation for the change from four-limbed land animals to aquatic animals with two limbs that function as flippers in the lineage that led to modern whales is natural selection. This process involves the gradual accumulation of small genetic changes over many generations that confer advantages for survival and reproduction in an aquatic environment, leading to the evolution of more streamlined aquatic organisms with modified limbs.

Over Time, the Lineage That Led to Modern Whales Shows