Phylogeny Practice Problems

A monophyletic group is composed of:

Why is the optimal tree being chosen for maximum parsimony?

In the context of evolution, "flight" is an example of ___________.

Insect wings and bird wings are examples of _________.

Which of the following can be a useful synapomorphy for a clade?

Which of the following groups includes ancestral species and all of their descendants?

Which one of the following is the best way to evaluate the hypothesis about the phylogenetic relationships among different organisms?

Identify the incorrect statement regarding phylogenies:

Based on the given tree diagram, which of the following statements is true?

Maximum parsimony asserts that the phylogeny with the  _________ number of evolutionary changes is the best estimate of true phylogeny. 

Some mammals developed fur unlike other vertebrates such as amphibians and reptiles which have retained their ancestral trait. The development of fur in mammals like bears is an example of ______. 

Modern humans are said to have originated in Africa over the past 200,000 years. Which of the following is likely to be the most recent common ancestor of modern humans if we based it on the following phylogenetic tree? 

Assuming that in a phylogenetic tree of dogs, the red wolf has a longer branch length than the Coyote. Which of the following statements could be true? 

If we construct a phylogenetic tree for dogs, determine which of the following animals will be the ideal outgroup. 

Based on the following evolutionary tree, which of the following is true? 

Humans, apes, and new world monkeys share the most recent common ancestor, thus, which of the following is true? 

Based on the following evolutionary tree, which of the following shares the same most recent common ancestor with humans?