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Evolution and Phylogenetic Analysis

Grade Level(s):

  • 13-16

Source:

  • Wilfred A. Franklin

Resource type:

  • Lab activity

Time: Two 3-hour sessions

Overview

In a flexible multisession laboratory, students investigate concepts of phylogenetic analysis at both the molecular and the morphological level. Students finish by conducting their own analysis on a collections skeletons using the Mesquite software.

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  • [Evidence of evolution: Grades 13-16] Similarities among existing organisms (including morphological, developmental, and molecular similarities) reflect common ancestry and provide evidence for evolution.
  • [Studying evolution: Grades 13-16] Evolutionary trees (i.e., phylogenies or cladograms) are built from multiple lines of evidence.
  • [Studying evolution: Grades 13-16] The principle of parsimony suggests that the phylogenetic hypothesis most likely to be true is the one requiring the fewest evolutionary changes.

There are no NGSS/DCI concepts currently linked to this resource.

The full activity requires access to a collection of skeletons representing the major phyla of vertebrates, a collection of primate skulls, or a collection of hominid skulls.