Scientific evidence documents the pattern of evolution. The evidence exists in a variety of categories. Name and define these categories

Evidences of evolution are categorized as follows -

Direct observation of evolutionary change Homology and development Fossil record and biogeograhy Vestigeal organs

Explanation:

Evolutionary changes can be observed either in nature or at a small scale in laboratory by the conditions experimentally generated. For example we can take an organism which has small life span like Drosophila and artificially produce earliest environment like conditions to observe how its development is affected.

Homology supports the common ancestry of the organisms. Homologous structures are formed from a common ancestor. Even if these are structurally different, developmentally they are related.

Fossil records are the most important evidences that document changes in the organisms in the course of time. Sedimentary rocks are the most rich sources of fossils.

Some structural or genetic features serve no apparent purposes. These are called vestigial organs. But as these are present in the organism they show that these are functional in the early forms of that organism.