Question

Currently, two of the living elephant species (X and Y) are placed in the genus Loxodonta, and a third surviving species (Z) is placed in the genus Elephas. Assuming this classification reflects evolutionary relatedness. Draw the most accurate evolutionary tree.

Answer 1

Answer:

Explanation:

The evolutionary tree is composed of,

• Lineages → These are the taxonomic groups of interest placed in the extremes of the lines called branches ⇒ Elephant species X, Y, Z

• Nodes → These are the ramification points, which are also known as divergence points. They represent the location of the most recent common ancestor ⇒ The red spot in the graph shows the location o the most recent ancestor between species X and Y

• Root → This is the older common ancestor that all lineages share. The first one in the tree ⇒ The blue spot in the graph show the oldest common ancestor shared by the three species

Two or more lineages are more related to each other if they share a recent common ancestor -In this example, X and Y are more related to each other-. This means that they all diverge from the same node.

Two or more lineages are less related to each other if they lack a recent common ancestor. This is, the node from which these lineages diverge is placed far away in the tree.