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Biology  /  Bio 1809  ·  Atom · ~20 seconds

Shared Ancestral and Shared Derived Characters

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A shared ancestral character is present in every organism in a group; a shared derived character arose later, present in only some.

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A vertebral column, present in every animal on a vertebrate tree, is ancestral; an amniotic egg, present in some, is derived.

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Whether a trait is ancestral or derived depends on which tree is examined — the trait can be either.