Background and context
To build phylogenetic trees, scientists must collect character information that allows them to make evolutionary connections between organisms. Using morphologic and molecular data, scientists work to identify homologous characteristics and genes. Similarities between organisms can stem either from shared evolutionary history (homologies) or from separate evolutionary paths (analogies). After homologous information is identified, scientists use cladistics to organize these events as a means to determine an evolutionary timeline. Scientists apply the concept of maximum parsimony, which states that the likeliest order of events is probably the simplest shortest path. For evolutionary events, this would be the path with the least number of major divergences that correlate with the evidence.