Wings Evolved Independently Four Times
A wing is a limb used for flight. Insects, pterosaurs, birds and bats each invented it separately.
A wing is a limb or structure used for flight. Powered flight has evolved four separate times in animals: insects first, then pterosaurs, then birds, then bats. Each solved the same problem differently — an insect wing is an outgrowth of the body wall, a pterosaur's is skin stretched on one enormous finger, a bat's is skin across four fingers, and a bird's is feathers on a shortened arm. *Wing* is Old Norse *vængr*, which replaced the Old English *fether*.
- A flight limb. *A bird's wing.'
- A building section. *The east wing.*
- A political faction. *The left wing.*
- To fly. *Winging south.*
- Old Norse — *vængr*. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | wing | A wing. |
| Plural | wings | Wings. |
| Verb | wing | Winging. |
| Adjective | winged | Winged. |
| Old Norse | vængr | A wing. |
- The bird spread its wings.Flight.
- The hospital's new wing.Building.
- On the left wing.Politics.
Four inventions of flight
- Insects — outgrowths of the body wall, around 400 million years ago
- Pterosaurs — skin stretched on one vastly elongated finger
- Birds — feathers on a shortened, modified arm
- Bats — skin stretched across four elongated fingers
- Each solution is anatomically unrelated to the others
Old Norse *vængr*, a wing, which displaced Old English *fether*.
How many times has flight evolved?
Four times in animals: insects, pterosaurs, birds and bats, each with an anatomically different wing.
How does a bat's wing differ from a bird's?
A bat's is skin stretched across four elongated fingers; a bird's is feathers on a shortened arm.