10.3 Phylogeny

Question 1

What are the four things that are studied to discover links between organisms and common ancestors

Answer 1

1. compare the similarities and differences in organisms’ DNA, RNA
2. protein structures
3. fossil record
4. morphology

Question 2

What is phylogeny

Answer 2

The evolutionary relationships between between organisms

Question 3

What is phylogenetics

Answer 3

the study of evolutionary history of groups of organisms

Question 4

What’s a phylogenetic tree

Answer 4

A branched diagram used to represent the evolutionary relationships between organisms, including how different species have evolved from a common ancestor

Question 5

What are sister groups

Answer 5

2 descendants that split from the same node

Question 6

How are phylogenetic trees produced

Answer 6

By looking at the similarities and differences in species physical characteristics and genetic make up lots of information has been collected from fossils

Question 7

6 Advantages of phylogeny

Answer 7

1. can be done without reference to Linnaean classification
2. confirms classification groups are correct or causes them to be changed
3. continuous tree whereas classification requires discrete taxonomical groups which avoids scientists having to put organisms into a specific group that they do not quite fit
4. hierarchal nature of Linnaean classification can be misleading as it implies different groups within the same rank are equivalent
5. They can indicate how long ago species diverged from a common ancestor
6. both extinct and not included