The manx cat is in the domestic cat group, and the bobcat is in the lynx group. both have a trait in common: short, stubby tails.
according to the phylogeny, which is the most parsimonious explanation for this common trait in these two species of cat?

Both share common ancestry

Explanation:

Though both cats are of different groups, the presence of an ananatomical similarity - short, stubby tails - suggest strongly that they share a common ancestry i.e evolved from the same organism who had lived many years before, and possess short, stubby tails alongside other traits no longer shared by both bobcat and Manx cat