Phylogeny and the Tree of Life

A collection of vocabulary flashcards related to phylogeny and the classification of life, derived from lecture notes.

Phylogeny

The study of evolutionary relationships among biological entities, often species.

Phylogenetic Tree

A branching diagram that represents evolutionary relationships among various species.

Derived Characters

Traits that are unique to a specific clade and help to differentiate it from other groups.

Ancestral Characters

Traits that originated in a distant ancestor; shared among multiple organisms.

Binomial Nomenclature

A two-part scientific naming system for organisms, consisting of genus and species.

Taxonomy

The science of naming, describing, and classifying organisms.

Systematics

The scientific study of the diversity of organisms and their evolutionary relationships.

Homology

Similarity in traits or genes due to shared ancestry.

Analogy

Similarity in traits due to convergent evolution, not common ancestry.

Cladistics

A method of classification based on shared derived characters used to infer phylogenetic relationships.

Sister Taxa

Groups of organisms that share a common ancestor not shared by any other group.

Gene Duplication

A process that creates additional copies of a gene, leading to the development of gene families.

Orthologous Genes

Genes in different species that evolved from a common ancestor through speciation.

Paralogous Genes

Gene copies within a species that have diverged from one another due to gene duplication.

Horizontal Gene Transfer

The movement of genetic material between organisms other than through vertical transmission.

Eukarya

One of the three domains of life, consisting of organisms with complex cells that contain nuclei.

Prokaryotes

Single-celled organisms that lack a membrane-bound nucleus, categorized into two domains: Bacteria and Archaea.

Molecular Homologies

Similarities in DNA sequences that can indicate evolutionary relationships.

Trait

A characteristic feature of an organism that can be inherited.

Phloem

The vascular tissue responsible for the transport of nutrients and carbohydrates in plants.

Linnaean Hierarchy

A system for classifying organisms into increasingly inclusive categories: domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species.

Shared Derived Character

A characteristic that defines a clade and distinguishes its members from others.

Common Ancestor

The most recent ancestor shared by two or more evolutionary lineages.