Homoplasy: The Phylogenetic Tree

A phylogenetic tree allows an individual to see how closely related an organism is to another organism. It also shows homoplasy, vestigial structures, extinction, and the change of an organism over time.
While classifying organisms in Exercise Part 1, organisms 13, 14, 28 1, 16 and 24 were places in Order 1 of the Phylum Caminalcula. However through the fossil reconstruction, the construction of a phylogenetic tree, in Exercise 2 Part 4, it appeared that organisms 12, 2, 22, 3, 4, and 9 are closer related to organisms 19 and 20 than otherwise thought in Exercise Part 1. So in Exercise 2 Part 5, the orders and families were switched. Also through the fossil reconstruction showed homoplasy.
Homoplasy is a characteristic shared by a species but is not common in its ancestors. In the Phylum Caminalcula, many of the organisms’ ancestor’s eyes differ from their decedents eyes. For example organisms 47 and 69 are recent caminalcules according to the fossil reconstruction; one of their ancestors is organism 63. Organism 63 eyes are separated, however its decedents eyes are beginning to come closer together. This is homoplasy because characteristic of having eyes close together is evolving independently in the linage. During the construction of the phylogentic tree, vestigial structures were noticeable in some lineages.
In the Phylum Caminalcula, many organisms had vestigial structures. For example, organism 41 had three fingers but through evolution its decedents slowly lost a finger as seen in organisms 61 and 22. Through evolution organism 41 decedents may have lost the need for a third finger so over the course of 2 million years; the linage gradually lost the third finger. But the evidence of the ancestor’s characteristics is still present due to the reduction of the third finger in its decedents. The phylogentic tree also indicated extinction in some