f Phylogeny: The science and underlying data

This article explains the nature of some of the phylogenetic data underlying a 2010 ‘Phylogeny Weekend’ from the viewpoint of a scientist. Phylogenies are a way of visualising inferred evolutionary relationships between organisms, making them intelligible and useful. They may be based upon morphological or genetic data, and are constructed through a series of steps, outlined below, and reliant upon a series of assumptions. I describe how phylogenies are used in my work, to interpret the evolution of plant characters such as the nature of pollen grains. I also explain how the guided walk, Plant Routes, was developed to provide an interactive exploration of phylogeny at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.