  The parsimony score of a character on a tree equals the number of state
changes required to fit that character onto the tree. We show that for
unordered, reversible characters this score equals the number of tree
rearrangements required to fit the tree onto the character. We discuss
implications of this connection for the debate over the use of consensus trees
or total evidence, and show how it provides a link between incongruence of
characters and recombination.
