Use the figure to answer the question.

Which of the following statements is supported by the phylogeny in the figure?
A) Deuterostoma are more evolutionarily advanced than Porifera.
B) Traits, once they evolve, are retained in later-evolving taxonomic groups.
C) Animals show no evidence of convergent evolution in their traits.
D) Animals with extremely different adult forms can be relatively closely related.

Question

Use the figure to answer the question.

Which of the following statements is supported by the phylogeny in the figure?
A) Deuterostoma are more evolutionarily advanced than Porifera. 
B) Traits, once they evolve, are retained in later-evolving taxonomic groups. 
C) Animals show no evidence of convergent evolution in their traits. 
D) Animals with extremely different adult forms can be relatively closely related.

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The phylogeny shows that animals with very different adult forms (e.g. sponges and cephalochordates) can be relatively closely related, as they both fall under the basal animal clades. This suggests that the morphological diversity seen in animals is not strictly tied to their distance on the evolutionary tree.

Use the Figure to Answer the Question