How does a gene tree differ from a species tree?
A) A gene tree shows the relationships among all the genes in a species genome, whereas a species tree shows the relationships among species.
B) A gene tree is based on gene sequences, whereas a species tree is based on morphological features of each species.
C) A gene tree is a phylogeny of individual genes, and can include multiple genes from a single species and/or samples of the same gene from multiple species; in a species tree, each species is represented by only a single branch.
D) A gene tree is a subcategory of species tree, in which the data used to create the tree comes from gene sequences.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

A gene tree shows the evolutionary relationships among individual genes or gene families, and can include multiple genes from a single species or samples of the same gene from multiple species. In contrast, a species tree shows the evolutionary relationships among species based on their common ancestry, usually using multiple genes or morphological data. While related, these two types of trees are not always congruent due to phenomena such as gene duplication, horizontal gene transfer, and incomplete lineage sorting.

How Does a Gene Tree Differ from a Species Tree