Question

Which of the following would be most useful in determining whether having wings or being wingless was the ancestral trait?

a) Maximum likelihood methods

b) An ingroup

c) An outgroup

d) Homologies

e) Homoplasies

Answer 1

An outgroup comparison is most useful for determining whether having wings or being wingless was the ancestral trait, utilizing the principle of maximum parsimony that assumes the simplest evolutionary pathway.Thd correct answer is option C.

Step-by-step explanation:

To determine whether having wings or being wingless was the ancestral trait, an outgroup would be most useful. An outgroup is a species or group of species that diverged before the lineage containing the groups of interest.

Comparing the ingroup, which is the group of taxa being analyzed, to an outgroup can reveal which traits are ancestral and which are derived.

The concept of maximum parsimony assists in this analysis by hypothesizing that the simplest explanation, with the fewest character changes, is likely the correct evolutionary pathway.

The assumption is that events in evolution, including trait development, occurred in the most straightforward way possible.

Therefore, the outgroup comparison can help indicate whether wings or winglessness is the ancestral state by providing a point of reference.The correct answer is option C.