Phylogeny

AP Biology· difficulty 3/5

Lungfish (Lung), salmon (Salm), tuna, cow, and human are placed on a tree.

Which statement is CONSISTENT with the topology shown?

A
$Lungfish are more closely related to mammals than salmon are to mammals$
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B
$Cow and tuna form a clade to the exclusion of human$
C
$Salmon is the sister taxon of cow$
D
$Lungfish and tuna form a clade$

Explanation

The tree groups lungfish with the mammal clade (cow + human) more recently than the basal split with salmon. This matches molecular evidence that lungfish are more closely related to tetrapods than ray-finned fishes are.

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