Question

1. look closely at the taxa of the rat, rabbit, and squirrel. based on their classifications, which two species are most closely related? how do you know? type your answer here.

Explanation:

In biological classification, the more taxonomic levels two species share, the more closely related they are. The rat (Rattus norvegicus) and the squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) both belong to the order Rodentia, while the rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) belongs to the order Lagomorpha. Since the rat and the squirrel share a higher - level taxonomic category (order) compared to either of them with the rabbit, they are more closely related.

Answer:

The rat and the squirrel are most closely related because they both belong to the order Rodentia while the rabbit belongs to the order Lagomorpha.