Humans, chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans are members of a clade called the "great apes", which shared a common ancestor about 15 million years ago. Gibbons and siamangs comprise a clade called the "lesser apes". Tree-branch lengths indicate elapsed time.
Assuming chimps and gorillas are humans' closest relatives, removing humans from the great ape clade and placing them in a different clade has the effect of making the phylogenetic tree of the great apes ________.
A) polyphyletic
B) paraphyletic
C) monophyletic
D) into a new order

Question

Humans, chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans are members of a clade called the "great apes", which shared a common ancestor about 15 million years ago. Gibbons and siamangs comprise a clade called the "lesser apes". Tree-branch lengths indicate elapsed time.
Assuming chimps and gorillas are humans' closest relatives, removing humans from the great ape clade and placing them in a different clade has the effect of making the phylogenetic tree of the great apes ________.
A) polyphyletic 
B) paraphyletic 
C) monophyletic 
D) into a new order

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Placing humans in a different clade would remove the common ancestor that unites all great apes, making the great ape clade paraphyletic.

Humans, Chimpanzees, Gorillas, and Orangutans Are Members of a Clade