SYSTEMATICS BASED ON EVOLUTIONARY
RELATIONSHIPS: Cladistics and Phylogeny
SYSTEMATICS is the study of the diversity of
organisms in the evolutionary context. It intends to use
phylogeny in classifying organisms. PHYLOGENY is the
study of the evolutionary history and relationships among
organisms. Evidences from a wide variety of sources
including paleontology, embryology, morphology, anatomy
and molecular biology can be used to establish phylogeny.
Over the last few centuries systematists have developed
different approaches to show relationships among organisms.
The most commonly used is CLADISTICS.
CLADISTICS studies relationships between taxa
using shared derived characters. The basic assumption
behind cladistics is that members of a group share a
common recent ancestor and are thus more "closely related"
to one another than they are to other groups of organisms.
Related groups of organisms are recognized because they
share a set of derived characters. These derived characters
were inherited from a recent ancestor.
PHYLOGENY - the evolutionary relationships among
organisms
CLADOGRAM - a phylogenetic tree that shows relationship
of taxa based on shared derived characters
CHARACTER - any trait of an organism that can be
described or measured
CHARACTER STATE - describes the character
HOMOLOGOUS CHARACTERS - characters having similar
structures because these were derived from a common
ancestor
ANALOGOUS CHARACTERS - characters that have
separate evolutionary origins, but are superficially similar
because they perform the same function
CLADE - a group of taxa consisting of an ancestor and all of
its descendant taxa
EVOLUTIONARY MEASURES
Scientists must collect accurate information that
allows them to make evolutionary connections among
organisms. Similar to detective work, scientists must use
evidence to uncover the facts. In the case of phylogeny,
evolutionary investigations focus on two types of evidence:
morphologic (form and function) and genetic.
Homologous Structures
HOMOLOGOUS STRUCTURES are features that
overlap both morphologically (in form) and genetically. It
stems from developmental similarities that are based on
evolution. They share a similar embryonic origin; analogous
organs have a similar function.
In general, organisms that share similar physical
features and genomes tend to be more closely related than
those that do not.
Analogous Structures
ANALOGY or HOMOPLASY: When similar
characteristics occur because of the environmental
constraints and not due to a close evolutionary relationship.
Molecular Comparison
With the advancement of DNA technology, the area
of molecular systematics, which describes the use of
information on the molecular level including DNA analysis,
has blossomed. As with physical characteristics, even the
DNA sequence can be tricky to read in some cases. For some
situations, two very closely related organisms can appear
unrelated if a mutation occurred that caused a shift in the
genetic code. An insertion or deletion mutation would move
each nucleotide base over one place, causing two similar
codes to appear unrelated.
SHARED CHARACTERISTICS
Organisms evolve from common ancestors and then
diversify. Scientists use the phrase descent with modification
because even though related organisms have many of the
same characteristics and genetic codes, changes occur. This
pattern repeats over and over as one goes through the
phylogenetic tree of life:
1. A change in the genetic makeup of an organism leads to a
new trait which becomes prevalent in the group.
2. Many organisms descend from this point and have this
trait.
3. New variations continue to arise: some are adaptive and
persist, leading to new traits.
4. With new traits, a new branch point is determined (go back
to step 1 and repeat).
If a characteristic is found in the ancestor of a group,
it is considered a SHARED ANCESTRAL CHARACTER
because all of the organisms in the taxon or clade have that
trait.
If only some of the organisms in have this trait, and
to those that do, it is called a SHARED DERIVED
CHARACTER because this trait derived at some point but
does not include all of the ancestors in the tree.
CLADOGRAM GROUPING
Cladistic analyses have some pretty strict rules. For
example, cladists always assume that new species arise by
bifurcations of the original lineage. Most cladists assume that
the original ancestral species no longer exists after this
bifurcation, so each branching event results in two new
species. In addition, cladistic groupings must possess the
following characteristics:
1. All species in a grouping must share a common ancestor.
2. All species derived from a common ancestor must be
included in the taxon.
A MONOPHYLETIC GROUPING is one in which all species
share a common ancestor and all species derived from that
common ancestor are included. This is the only form of
grouping accepted as valid by cladists.
A PARAPHYLETIC GROUPING is one in which all species
share a common ancestor, but not all species derived from
that common ancestor are included.
A POLYPHYLETIC GROUPING is one in which species that
do not share an immediate common ancestor are lumped
together, while excluding other members that would link them.
CREATING A CLADOGRAM
STEP 1: Choose a group of organisms to classify - make sure
this group of organisms is a "clade". You'll also need to
choose an outgroup.
STEP 2: Determine the traits (also called characters) you'll
compare in your clade. In this example, we'll use
morphological traits.
STEP 3: Determine whether the traits you're comparing are
ancestral or derived.
STEP 4: Group the organisms by shared derived characters.
Use a nested diagram (Venn diagram).
STEP 5: Using the Venn diagram, create the cladogram.