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Biology 2e

Introduction

Biology 2eIntroduction
Photo shows a bee collecting nectar from a flower.
Figure 20.1 A bee's life is very different from a flower's, but the two organisms are related. Both are members of the domain Eukarya and have cells containing many similar organelles, genes, and proteins. (credit: modification of work by John Beetham)

Chapter Outline

20.1 Organizing Life on Earth
20.2 Determining Evolutionary Relationships
20.3 Perspectives on the Phylogenetic Tree

This bee and Echinacea flower (Figure 20.1) could not look more different, yet they are related, as are all living organisms on Earth. By following pathways of similarities and changes—both visible and genetic—scientists seek to map the evolutionary past of how life developed from single-celled organisms to the tremendous collection of creatures that have germinated, crawled, floated, swum, flown, and walked on this planet.

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