According to the principle of maximum parsimony,

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The principle of maximum parsimony states that the preferred tree is the one that requires the fewest evolutionary changes, so option B is correct. Option A is incorrect as phylogenies based on DNA may require only a few base changes if the organisms being compared are closely related. Option C is incorrect as a parsimonious tree for morphology-based phylogenies would require the fewest changes, not the most. Option D is also incorrect as examining a large number of trees does not relate to the principle of maximum parsimony.

According to the Principle of Maximum Parsimony