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Placental and marsupial mammals are two distinct groups. Placental mammals are more closely related to each other than to any other animal group, and marsupials share a similar closeness within their group. Despite their visual similarities, placental wolves and marsupial wolves belong to different groups.

If you use distance analysis of morphological traits to construct a phylogenetic tree that includes humans (a placental mammal), placental wolves, and marsupial wolves, which two groups would you conclude are most closely related? Would the tree be correct?

A. Placental wolves and marsupial wolves; yes
B. Marsupial wolves and humans; no
C. Marsupial wolves and humans; yes
D. Placental wolves and marsupial wolves; no

Answer :

Based on a distance analysis of morphological traits, the tree would suggest that placental wolves and marsupial wolves are most closely related.

A distance analysis of morphological traits would consider the similarities and differences in physical characteristics between different species to infer their evolutionary relationships. If such an analysis were used to construct a phylogenetic tree that includes humans (a placental mammal), placental wolves, and marsupial wolves, it would suggest that placental wolves and marsupial wolves are most closely related.

However, it is important to note that this conclusion would not be correct from an evolutionary perspective. The fact that placental wolves and marsupial wolves look similar does not necessarily indicate a close evolutionary relationship between the two groups. Morphological traits alone can be misleading when inferring evolutionary relatedness, as convergent evolution can result in similar traits evolving independently in distantly related species.

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