Would evolution by natural selection be able to happen if there was NO variation within a species? Why or why not?

Question

Deborah

Biology

6 June, 10:05

Would evolution by natural selection be able to happen if there was NO variation within a species? Why or why not?

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Isabelle Aguirre · Answer 1

Natural selection

Darwin's theory was based on the mechanism of natural selection, which explains how populations can evolve in such a way that they become better suited to their environments over time.

Individuals have variations within their heritable traits. Some variations make an individual better suited to survive and reproduce in their environment.

If this continues over generations, these favorable adaptations (the heritable features that aid survival and reproduction) will become more and more common in the population.

The population will not only evolve (change in its genetic makeup and inherited traits), but will evolve in such a way that it becomes adapted, or better-suited, to its environment.

Explanation:

Natural selection is the process through which populations of living organisms adapt and change. Individuals in a population are naturally variable, meaning that they are all different in some ways. This variation means that some individuals have traits better suited to the environment than others. Individuals with adaptive traits-traits that give them some advantage-are more likely to survive and reproduce. These individuals then pass the adaptive traits on to their offspring. Over time, these advantageous traits become more common in the population. Through this process of natural selection, favorable traits are transmitted through generations.