The whale shark has rows of teeth despite being a filter feeder. What's the best explanation of this feature?

Question

Question 15 options:

A)

The whale shark's teeth are an example of vestigial structures. If an inherited feature is no longer needed but also not harmful, there's no evolutionary pressure to get rid of it.

B)

The whale shark's teeth are an example of analogous structures. Whale sharks evolved them at the same time mammals and reptiles evolved their teeth.

C)

The whale shark's teeth are an example of embryonic structures. The teeth buds develop early enough in embryogenesis that the whale shark is still born with teeth.

D)

The whale shark's teeth are an example of homologous structures. Whale sharks evolved them even though they had no purpose for them.

Answer 1

The best explanation for the presence of teeth in whale sharks, despite being filter feeders, is:

A) The whale shark's teeth are an example of vestigial structures. If an inherited feature is no longer needed but also not harmful, there's no evolutionary pressure to get rid of it.

This explanation correctly identifies the teeth as remnants of a feature that may have been useful to their ancestors (which likely had a different feeding strategy) but are no longer functionally important in the context of their current feeding behavior.