Chapter 1 Topic 4

Question 1

Taxonomy

Answer 1

Discipline of naming organisms and placing them into containers of classification.

Question 2

Systematics

Answer 2

Classifying organisms based on their evolutionary relationships and history

Question 3

Von Baer’s Law

Answer 3

The more basic/general characters appear earlier in the embryo than the more special/unique characters

Question 4

Phylogeny

Answer 4

A field of systematics focusing on the evolutionary history among organisms.

Question 5

Phylogenetic Tree

Answer 5

Evolutionary hypothesis of group of biologically related taxa

Question 6

How to read the tree

Answer 6

Root
Tips
Node
Branch/Clade
Ingroup
Outgroup
Sister taxa
Basal Taxa
Derived Taxa

Question 7

What are the two types of phylogenies

Answer 7

Phylogram: Depicts hypotheses of evolutionary history
Cladograms: Only hypotheses on the relative relationships among taxa.

Question 8

What is a Monophyletic Group and give an example

Answer 8

A clade that includes the most recent common ancestor and all of its descendants.

Humans, Chimoanzees, Monkeys

Question 9

What is a Paraphyletic Group and give an example

Answer 9

A group that includes the most recent common ancestor and some of its descendants.

Non-avian dinosaurs.

Question 10

What is a Polyphyletic Group and give an example

Answer 10

A group that includes the some of its descendants without their common ancestor.

Animals that can fly.

Question 11

Whats basic steps in building simple phylogenic trees.

Answer 11

Gather data: Collect morphological and/or molecular data from the organisms you want to classify.

Identify Character States: For each character, determine the states in which it appears in different taxa

Choose an Outgroup: Select a group of organisms (outgroup) that is outside of your ingroup (the organisms you are focusing on), to help root the tree and identify ancestral traits.

Determine Synapomorphies: Identify traits that are shared by multiple taxa, which are derived from a common ancestor. These traits are used to group organisms on the tree.

Build the tree :) Use an algorithm like Maximum Parsimony, Maximum Likelihood, or Bayesian Inference.

Question 12

How are derived characters used in building phylogenic trees.

Question 13

Explain how homologous and analogous traits influence the building of a tree.

Question 14

Explain imperfections and complications in phylogenic study.

Question 15

Define a Branch Point/Node

Answer 15

The point branches meet, representing a last common ancestor and splitting of two taxa

Question 16

Define a common ancestor

Answer 16

Ancestral organism shared by two or more descendents.

Question 17

Define a sister taxa

Answer 17

The closest branches from a node.

Question 18

Define a basal taxon

Answer 18

Lineages that separate relatively early.

Question 19

Define an In Group

Answer 19

The group under study

Question 20

Define a out Group

Answer 20

Any group that is outside of the clade of interest

Question 21

Define Polytomy

Answer 21

More than two branches diverge from a common ancestor.

Question 22

Homologous

Answer 22

two anatomy structures or traits within different organism that derived from the common ancestor.

Question 23

Analogous

Answer 23

Character traits that independently evolved from convergence evolution.

Question 24

Cladistics

Question 25

Clade

Answer 25

The lines connecting nodes, root, and tips

Question 26

Symplesiomorphy

Answer 26

Ancestral feature shared by one or more of a taxonomic group.