Which analogy best represents the concept of common ancestry and the relationship between modern species?

A ladder, with older species on lower rungs and modern species on top.

A branching tree, where the fork in a branch represents a common ancestor.

A straight line, showing a direct progression from one species to the next.

A set of unconnected dots, each representing a unique modern species.

If two species, such as a human and a chimpanzee, share a relatively recent common ancestor, what is the primary conclusion we can draw?

One must be more 'evolved' than the other.

They will eventually merge into a single species.

They must live in the same type of habitat.

It was a primitive type of wolf that later moved to the water.

A generalist mammal that was neither a wolf nor a whale.

It was an early type of whale that still had legs.

A hybrid animal that was exactly half-wolf and half-whale.

It continues to exist alongside its descendants.

It becomes one of the two new descendant groups.

It is no longer considered a common ancestor.

A modern species that is in the process of creating a new descendant group.

A less-evolved version of a currently existing animal.

An ancient, extinct population from which two or more distinct descendant groups arose.

The very first living organism from which all life on Earth originated.