CBSE Class 10 Answered

Homologous structures are characteristics which are shared by related species because they have been inherited in some way from a common ancestor. The basic structure shared by closely related species show that they have evolved from a common ancestor but have been modified to adapt better to their environment.

Homologous structures provide evidence of evolution because they allow biologists to trace the evolutionary path of different species, linking them up in the larger evolutionary tree that links all life back to a common ancestor.