Checking Your Understanding: Using Cladogram Analysis

On the cladogram, which organism is the closest relative of the parrot?

• Frog

• Hare

• Caiman

• Parrot

What is the common ancestor of Letters C and E?

• 1

• 2

• 3

• 4

Who is most closely related to Taxidea taxus?

• Lutra lutra

• Panthera pardus

• Canis latrans

• Canis lupus

Which group of animals on this tree are most closely related to birds?

• Saurischian dinosaurs

• Ornithischian dinosaurs

• Crocodiles

• None of these are related to birds

According to the cladogram, which organism is most distantly related to the human?

• crayfish
• grasshopper
• perch
• frog

Each node on a cladogram represents...

• the last point at which two groups shared a common ancestor.

• the point at which one or more species became extinct.

• the most recent point at which a trait was lost in a certain clade.

• the point at which two clades joined and became monophyletic.

The cladogram shown is a model used by scientists to represent the order in which they hypothesize organisms descended from a common ancestor based on the appearance of derived characteristics.

Which of the following traits do the salamander and the lizard share?

• Jaws only

• Jaws and Lungs

• Claws or nails

• Jaws, Lungs, and Claws or nails

From the picture above, What do the species all have in common?

• Back bone

• Same father

• Common ancestor

• Feathers

Who is the closest relative to the brown bear?

• Giant panda

• Dog

• Lesser panda

• Sun bear

Which trait (adaptation) was developed most recently?

• tetrapod limbs

• feathers

• amnion

• They developed at the same time