Republic of the Philippines

MINDANAO STATE UNIVERSITY

General Santos City
-ooo0ooo-
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Bachelor of Secondary Education Department

Exercise on Phylogeny

Name: Rolando M. Baranda Jr.

Course and Year Level: BSEd Biology, 3rd year
Subject and Schedule: SED125 Evolutionary Biology for Teachers, TFR
Instructor: Sir Paul R. Olvis

You have discovered the skeletons of five new fossil animals, and you would like to
investigate their phylogenetic relationships.

After being told that species "A" is very primitive, you decide to use it as the outgroup
for a phylogenetic analysis.

You construct the following character matrix:

 Republic of the Philippines
MINDANAO STATE UNIVERSITY
General Santos City
-ooo0ooo-
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Bachelor of Secondary Education Department

1. Mark the character state transformations on the cladogram above.

2. Which character state is present in all five taxa? What is its implication to the tree?

The Orbit character state, which is the character state, contains it in all five taxa.
This implies that the character state is a typical primitive attribute, often known as
symplesiomorphy, indicating that these are not useful for reconstructing evolutionary
relationships.

3. Which derived character states are found in only one terminal taxon? What is its
implication?

Bipedality and the snout's horn at the tip are derived character states that are
exclusive to one terminal taxon, showing that they are autapomorphies, or distinctive
derived characters. Autapomorphics can shed light on an animal's lifestyle but cannot
tell where in the cladogram the animal belongs.
 Republic of the Philippines
MINDANAO STATE UNIVERSITY
General Santos City
-ooo0ooo-
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Bachelor of Secondary Education Department
4. Which derived character states are shared by more than one, but not all, terminal
taxa? Enumerate those characters. What is its implication?

The derived character states shared by several terminal species, but not all of
them, are the forelimb and hindlimb with digits, infratemporal, antorbital, and mandibular
fenestras. These character states, which are often referred to as synapomorphics, are
employed to facilitate the reconstruction of common ancestral patterns.

Traits, or shared derived features, are another name for synapomorphies.

possessed by a group of species and acquired from a common progenitor. The links
between different groupings of species over time are determined by taxonomy using
these traits. Animals that share derived features with one another have a more recent
common ancestor than those that do not. This is supported by similarities between us.
The degree to which species are related to one another through evolution can now be
used by taxonomists to classify species. For instance, one derived attribute that all birds
have is the existence of feathers. This trait sets birds apart from other animals and
places them in the taxonomic group Aves. Another trait that sets primates apart from
other animals is the capacity to oppose one's thumbs.

Common derived traits are crucial for taxonomy in general because they allow us
to understand the evolutionary links between various animal species. Taxonomists can
develop theories about the relationships between various organisms by recognizing and
contrasting these traits. Using this information, they can then divide those species up
into other taxonomic categories.

5. How many character state changes are needed on this cladogram?

According to the character change marks, there have been seven alterations.

Suppose someone proposes a different cladogram for these animals:

 Republic of the Philippines
MINDANAO STATE UNIVERSITY
General Santos City
-ooo0ooo-
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Bachelor of Secondary Education Department

6. Map the character state changes onto this cladogram.

7. How many character state changes are needed on this cladogram?

The number of modifications is about 11, according to the mapping of character

state changes in the alleged cladogram

8. Which of the two cladograms is preferred?

The one who was first displayed is the one who is favoured according to the two
cladograms.

9. What was the basis for your decision? Explain.

Based on the markings, I made my decision because a cladogram with fewer

base branches is suggested by rule of parsimony analysis. The first given cladogram
had the fewest blemishes, thus I liked this one. It is more organized and easier to
understand than the purported cladogram, which could overwhelm the observer, aside
from the rule.

10. Now YOU do it. Four animals are shown below, along with a list of characters that
might help us understand their phylogenetic relationships. Indicate whether the
indicated character state is present or not. Show at least three (3) alternative trees and
show the most parsimonious tree. Animal A is the outgroup.
 Republic of the Philippines
MINDANAO STATE UNIVERSITY
General Santos City
-ooo0ooo-
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Bachelor of Secondary Education Department

Complete the character matrix below:

Characters A B C D
1. Teeth missing from front of mouth YES YES YES YES
2. Bony frill along back of skull NO YES YES YES
3. Large horn on snout NO NO YES YES
4. Large horns above eyes NO NO NO YES
5. Large hole on surface of bony frill NO YES NO NO