AP Notes, Outlines, Study Guides, Vocabulary, Practice Exams and more!

AP Biology Phylogeny Vocab Flashcards

Terms : Hide Images
9352166808CladeA group of species that includes an ancestral species and all of its descendants0
9352166809CladisticsCladistics An approach to systematics in which organisms are placed into groups called "clades" based primarily on common descent1
9352166810Cladograma branching diagram showing the cladistic relationship between a number of species2
9352166811PhylogenyPhylogeny The evolutionary history of a species or group of species3
9352166812Phylogenetic TreeA branching diagram that shows the evolutionary tree of a group of organisms4
9352166813Derived CharacterAn evolutionary novelty that is unique to a particular clade Ex.) birds' feathers5
9352166814Monophyletic"Single tribe"; a group of taxa that consists of a common ancestor and all of its descendants; equivalent to a clade6
9352166815Polyphyletic"Many tribes"; a group of taxa derived from two or more different ancestors7
9352166816Paraphyletic"Beside the tribe"; a group of taxa that consist of a common ancestor and some, but not all of its descendants8
9352166817Maximum ParsiomonyA principle that states that when considering multiple explanations for an observation, one should first investigate the simplest explanation that is consistent with the facts Ex. For phylogenies based on DNA, the tree that matches most with this principle requires the fewest base changes9
9352166818HomoplasyAnalogous structures that arose independently10
9352166819Homologystructures that originated from a common ancestor and have since adapted11
9352166820OutgroupA species or group of species from an evolutionary lineage that is known to have diverged before the lineage that contains the group of species being studied; Its selected so that its members are closely related to the group of species being studied, but not as closely related as any study-group members are to each other12
9352166821Analagousstructures that perform a similar function but have a different evolutionary origin, such as the wings of insects and birds.13
9352166822Homologoussimilar in position, structure, and evolutionary origin but not necessarily in function14
9352166823TaxonomyLinnaeus; A scientific discipline concerned with naming and classifying the diverse forms of life; Domain, Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Family, Genus, Species15
9352166824Taxona group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit16
9352166825Molecular SystematicsCompares DNA and amino acid sequences between organisms to determine evolutionary relationships17
9352166826Molecular Clockthe average rate at which a species' genome accumulates mutations, used to measure their evolutionary divergence and in other calculations.18
9352166827Kingdom/Phylum/Class/Order/Family/Genus/Speciestaxonomic categories (binomial nomenclature)19
9352166828Domainhighest taxonomic rank of organisms (bacteria, archaea, eukaryotes)20
9352166829FungiKingdom: organisms w/ chitin cell walls and perform absorbtion21
9352166830AnimaliaKingdom: multicellular, eukaryotic organisms that are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and independently at some point in their lives, organisms that ingest other organisms, lack cell walls22
9352166831PlantaeKingdom: organisms w/ cellulose cell walls and perform photosynthesis (plants)23
9352166832ProtistaKingdom: contains all unicellular eukaryotes except yeast, multicellular algae24
9352166833BacteriaDomain (consists of prokaryotic cells possessing primarily diacyl glycerol diester lipids in their membranes and bacterial rRNA, no nuclear membrane)25
9352166834ArchaeaDomain (no nuclear membrane, prokaryote like Bacteria, but more closely related to Eukarya)26
9352166835EukaryaDomain (contain a membrane-bound nucleus) (this is animals and humans etc- the important one)27
9352166836Phylogrambranch length shows evolutionary change/time28
9352166837Properties of Lifecellular organization, sensitivity, growth (metabolism), development, reproduction, regulation, homeostasis29
9352166838Panspermia Theoryextraterrestrial origin of life, meteors/cosmic dust brought organic molecules to earth; water on Europa, fossils on Mars indicate evidence of extraterrestrial life30
9352166839Spontaneous Origin Theoryaccepted by most scientists; life developed from inanimate objects as molecules became more complex31
9352166840Miller-Urey Experiment (1953)simulated conditions of Earth's early atmosphere and tried to see if an electric spark could produce molecules (found that carbon compounds and then amino acids were created)32
9352166841RNA first Theorylife originated with a basic polymer of RNA which did the work of proteins and DNA until these molecules were produced and functioned on their own (might have started with PNA- protein nucleic acid that was able to form spontaneously and self-replicate)33
9352166842Metabolism-first Theorylife originated with monamers contained in simple capsules similar to the cell membrane and over time some molecules performed reactions better than others->evolution34
9352166843reducing atmosphereavailability of hydrogen allows organic molecules to form more easily, lack of oxygen allowed amino acids to last longer (normally would react w/ sugar and form CO2 in oxygen environment)35

Need Help?

We hope your visit has been a productive one. If you're having any problems, or would like to give some feedback, we'd love to hear from you.

For general help, questions, and suggestions, try our dedicated support forums.

If you need to contact the Course-Notes.Org web experience team, please use our contact form.

Need Notes?

While we strive to provide the most comprehensive notes for as many high school textbooks as possible, there are certainly going to be some that we miss. Drop us a note and let us know which textbooks you need. Be sure to include which edition of the textbook you are using! If we see enough demand, we'll do whatever we can to get those notes up on the site for you!