Why are orthologous genes preferred over paralogous genes when constructing phylogenetic trees?

• A. Paralogous genes are more likely to undergo horizontal gene transfer, complicating phylogenetic analysis.
• B. Paralogous genes tend to have more conserved sequences than orthologous genes.
• C. Orthologous genes are always shorter in sequence length compared to paralogous genes.
• D. Orthologous genes reflect evolutionary events such as speciation, while paralogous genes may reflect duplication events within the same lineage.

Answer: (D)