| Natural selection describes the
biological process in which the differences of individuals within a population
influences their abilities to survive and reproduce in an environment. The
differences in individuals is a result of their genetic inheritance from their
parents. In a population, any characteristic which blocks reproduction success
tends to decrease generation by generation. In time, the ill-adapted die out. On
the other hand,the individuals who do survive and reproduce will tend to produce
offspring which are better adapted to the environment. Natural selection tends
to promote adaptations that will increase the organism's ability to survive in
an environment. Natural selection can serve to stabilize a population if the new traits, called mutations, are eliminated when they appear because they are not as well-adapted to the environment. The opposite effect is obtained when a new trait is introduced which allows individuals to adapt better over time, the species will change as this mutation becomes more widespread in the population. In human beings, increased brain size helped individuals to adapt better, and so brain size increased gradually in the species. Changes in the overall genetic makeup of a population are normal when there are environmental changes, especially sever environmental disruptions. Specialized adaptations to specific environments can lead, over time, to the development of subpopulation of individuals, ones who are better adapted to particular soil conditions food sources and so on. Given enough time, these subpopulations may develop into separate species, such as zebras and horses, living in distinct environments and not interbreeding. |