Ch. 12 Diversity of Life

Question 1

analogous structure

Answer 1

a character found in two taxa that looks similar because of convergent evolution, not because of descent from a common ancestor

Question 2

binomial nomenclature

Answer 2

a system of two-part scientific names for an organism, which includes genus and species names

Question 3

branch point

Answer 3

a point on a phylogenetic tree where a single lineage splits to distinct new ones

Question 4

clade

Answer 4

a group of taxa with the same set of shared derived characters, including an ancestral species and all its descendants

Question 5

cladistics

Answer 5

a method used to organize homologous traits to describe phylogenies using common
descendent as the primary criterion used to classify organisms

Question 6

class

Answer 6

the category in the taxonomic classification system that falls within phylum and includes orders

Question 7

domain

Answer 7

the highest level category in the classification system and that includes all taxonomic classifications below it; it is the most inclusive taxon

Question 8

family

Answer 8

the category in the taxonomic classification system that falls within order and includes genera

Question 9

genus

Answer 9

the category in the taxonomic classification system that falls within family and includes species; the first part of the scientific name

Question 10

Kingdom

Answer 10

the category in the taxonomic classification system that falls within domain and includes phyla

Question 11

maximum parsimony

Answer 11

applying the simplest, most obvious way with the least number of steps

Question 12

molecular systematics

Answer 12

the methods of using molecular evidence to identify phylogenetic relationships

Question 13

monophyletic group

Answer 13

(also, clade) organisms that share a single ancestor

Question 14

order

Answer 14

the category in the taxonomic classification system that falls within class and includes families

Question 15

phylogenetic tree

Answer 15

diagram used to reflect the evolutionary relationships between organisms or groups of organisms

Question 16

phylogeny

Answer 16

evolutionary history and relationship of an organism or group of organisms

Question 17

phylum

Answer 17

the category in the taxonomic classification system that falls within kingdom and includes classes

Question 18

rooted

Answer 18

describing a phylogenetic tree with a single ancestral lineage to which all organisms represented in the diagram relate

Question 19

shared ancestral character

Answer 19

a character on a phylogenetic branch that is shared by a particular clade

Question 20

shared derived character

Answer 20

a character on a phylogenetic tree that is shared only by a certain clade of organisms

Question 21

sister taxa

Answer 21

two lineages that diverged from the same branch point

Question 22

species

Answer 22

the most specific category of classification

Question 23

systematics

Answer 23

the science of determining the evolutionary relationships of organisms

Question 24

taxon

Answer 24

a single level in the taxonomic classification system

Question 25

taxonomy

Answer 25

the science of classifying organisms