Deck 23: Understanding Diversity: Systematics

Question 1

The mold that produces penicillin is Penicillium notatum. Penicillium is the name of its

A) genus
B) order
C) family
D) species
E) specific epithet

Answer 1

When you are given the name of an organism, you are given only the genus and the specific epithet which make up the species. The remainder of the classification is not provided as the genus and specific epithet are the most narrowed of the classification name so they will be enough to differentiate the organism from others. The first name (the capitalized word) is the genus and the second name is the specific epithet. So if you are given the name of the mold that produces penicillin, you are given the genus and specific epithet in that order. The name of the mold that produces penicillin is Penicillium notatum.
Penicillium from Penicillium notatum is which of the following?
(a) Genus. This is the correct answer as the genus is always the capitalized first word in a name of an organism.
(b) Order. The order is not given in the name of an organism so this is not correct.
(c) Family. The family is not given in the name of an organism so this is not correct.
(d) Species. The species is the entire name given for an organism both genus and specific epithet. So this answer is incorrect.
(e) Specific epithet. This is the second word in a name of an organism. For Penicillium notatum , notatum would be the specific epithet. So this answer is not correct.
So the correct answer is answer choice (a).

Question 2

Decomposers such as molds and mushrooms belong to which domain and kingdom?

A) Eukarya, Plantae
B) Bacteria, Archaea
C) Archaea, Fungi
D) Eukarya, Archaea
E) Eukarya, Fungi

Answer 2

Decomposers such as mushrooms and molds are eukaryotes because they are composed of eukaryotic cells. They are responsible for absorbing nutrients from nonliving organic material including waste, dead leaves, and dead animals. Decomposers are responsible for recycling nutrients in aste and making them usable again.
Determine the domain and kingdom to which mushrooms and molds belong.
(a) Eukarya, Plantae. This is incorrect because although mushrooms and molds are eukarya, they are not plants.
(b) Bacteria, Archaea. This is incorrect because molds and mushrooms are eukarya, not bacteria. Also Archaea is a kingdom in the domain Archaea. The kingdom in the domain bacteria is bacteria.
(c) Archaea Fungi. This is incorrect because molds and mushrooms belong to the domain Eukarya, not Archaea. Also, Fungi are a kingdom in the domain Eukarya, not Archaea.
(d) Eukarya, Archaea. This is incorrect because although molds and mushrooms are eukarya, they are not archaea. Also Archaea is a kingdom in the domain Archaea.
(e) Eukarya, Fungi. This is the correct answer because mushrooms and molds belong to the domain Eukarya and the kingdom Fungi
So the correct answer is answer choice (e).

Question 3

Each branching point in a cladogram

A) is called a root
B) represents a clade
C) represents the divergence of two or more groups from a common ancestor
D) represents horizontal gene transfer
E) marks the divergence of two kingdoms

Answer 3

Cladograms are phylogenetic trees that depict hypothesized evolutionary relationships between organisms based on common ancestry.
The branching point of a cladogram
(a) Is called a root. This s not true because the branching point is called a node. The root represents the most recent common ancestor of all the clades in the cladogram.
(b) Represents a clade. This is not true because the branch represents a clade, not the branching point.
(c) Represents the divergence of two or more groups from a common ancestor. This is true so this is the correct answer.
(d) Represents horizontal gene transfer. This is not true because horizontal gene transfer occurs between two unrelated organisms in two different taxa. It cannot be shown on a cladogram.
(e) Marks the divergence of two kingdoms. The branching point does not always mark the divergence of two kingdoms so this cannot be correct.
So the correct answer choice is answer choice (c).

Question 4

The presence of homologous structures in two different groups of organisms suggests that

A) the organisms evolved from a common ancestor
B) convergent evolution has occurred
C) they belong to a polyphyletic group
D) homoplasy has occurred
E) independently acquired characters may evolve when organisms inhabit similar environments

Question 5

Dolphins and humans both have the ability to nurse their young, whereas the less closely related sharks do not. The ability to nurse their young is

A) a shared derived character of fish and mammals
B) a shared ancestral character of all vertebrates
C) a shared derived character of mammals
D) an example of homoplastic behavior
E) an example of reversal

Question 6

A group of organisms that includes a recent common ancestor and all its descendants is

A) polyphyletic
B) paraphyletic
C) monophyletic
D) an example of horizontal gene transfer
E) a sister group

Question 7

In cladistic analysis

A) ancestral characters are used to reconstruct phylogenies
B) characters must be homoplastic
C) polyphyletic groups are preferred
D) outgroup analysis is rarely used
E) shared derived characters are the preferred evidence for relatedness

Question 8

When systematists apply the principle of parsimony, they

A) choose the cladogram that requires the fewest changes in characters as the most probable explanation to interpret the data
B) select multiple hypotheses to explain each relationship
C) do not use outgroups
D) typically use a polyphyletic approach
E) hypothesize that the most complex explanation is most probably the correct one

Question 9

In interpreting a cladogram,

A) we can identify the specific ancestor of each taxon by tracing each branch back to the node closest to the root
B) taxa on the right side of a cladogram have evolved from the taxa on the left side
C) the relative placement of smaller branches allows us to determine the number of years since a particular taxon has evolved
D) we can determine relationships by tracing along the branches back to the most recent common ancestor
E) we must first identify horizontal gene transfer

Question 10

What are some of the criteria/tools biologists might use to assign the protists to monophyletic groups?

Question 11

What are the advantages of using domains, rather than kingdoms, as the highest rank of classification?

Question 12

EVOLUTION LINK. Are members of a clade similar because they share a common ancestor, or do they belong to the same clade because they are similar? How might your answer vary depending on which approach to systematics you are following?

Question 13

EVOLUTION LINK. The TATA-binding protein (TBP) is thought to be necessary for transcription in all eukaryotic cell nuclei. Studies show that archaea, but not bacteria, have a protein structurally and functionally similar to TBP. What does this similarity suggest regarding the evolution of archaea, bacteria, and eukaryotes? How might knowledge of this similarity affect how systematists classify these organisms?

Question 14

ANALYZING DATA. Construct a cladogram based on the following data. Mosses are plants with no vascular tissue. Horsetails, ferns, gymnosperms (pines and other plants with naked seeds), and angiosperms (flowering plants) are all vascular plants. Seeds are absent in all but the gymnosperms and angiosperms. Angiosperms are the only seed plants with flowers. ( Hint: To help you construct the cladogram, draw a simple table showing which characters are present in each group. See Figure.)
FIGURE Animated Constructing a cladogram

Question 15

ANALYZING DATA. In the illustration, what kind of grouping is represented by the bracketed area? What type of group is formed by 2 and 3? What type of group is formed by 2, 4, and 6?