Many biologists believe that the bacterial phylogenetic "tree" would be better represented as a "bush" with intertwined branches, given the prevalence of horizontal gene transfer between bacteria.

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Horizontal gene transfer, such as through plasmids or viral transduction, can cause genes to be shared between bacterial species that are not closely related on the traditional phylogenetic tree. As a result, the relationships between bacterial species may be better represented as a network or bush-like structure rather than a single trunk with branching branches.

Many Biologists Believe That the Bacterial Phylogenetic "Tree" Would Be