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Related Concept Videos

What is Natural Selection?01:32

What is Natural Selection?

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Natural selection is an evolutionary process in which individuals with survival-promoting traits reproduce at higher rates. These favorable traits become more common within a population or species. Naturally selected traits initially arise via random genetic mutations. In order for selection to occur, there must be variation within a population, the trait controlling the variation must be heritable, and there must be an evolutionary advantage for variation in the trait.
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Types of Selection01:46

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Natural selection influences the frequencies of particular alleles and phenotypes within populations in several different ways. Primarily, natural selection can be directional, stabilizing, or disruptive. Directional selection favors one extreme trait and shifts the population towards that phenotype while selecting against individuals displaying alternate traits. Stabilizing selection favors an intermediate trait with a narrow range of variation. Deviation from the optimal phenotype towards an...
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Frequency-dependent Selection01:21

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When the fitness of a trait is influenced by how common it is (i.e., its frequency) relative to different traits within a population, this is referred to as frequency-dependent selection. Frequency-dependent selection may occur between species or within a single species. This type of selection can either be positive—with more common phenotypes having higher fitness—or negative, with rarer phenotypes conferring increased fitness.
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Organisms that are well-adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. However, natural selection does not lead to perfectly adapted organisms. Several factors constrain natural selection.
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Competition02:34

Competition

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When organisms require the same limited resources within an environment, they may have to compete for them. Competition is a net-negative interaction. Even if two competing individuals or populations do not interact directly, the overall fitness of both competitors is lowered as a result of not having full access to the limited resource.
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Second Law of Thermodynamics00:53

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The Second Law of Thermodynamics states that entropy, or the amount of disorder in a system, increases each time energy is transferred or transformed. Each energy transfer results in a certain amount of energy that is lost—usually in the form of heat—that increases the disorder of the surroundings. This can also be demonstrated in a classic food web. Herbivores harvest chemical energy from plants and release heat and carbon dioxide into the environment. Carnivores harvest the...
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 31, 2025

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Natural selection contributes to food web stability.

Akihiko Mougi1

  • 1Institute of Agricultural and Life Sciences, Academic Assembly, Shimane University, Matsue, Japan.

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|January 11, 2020
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Intraspecific variation, or diversity within a species, is crucial for maintaining large, stable ecosystems. Larger, more diverse communities require greater intraspecific variation for long-term stability and evolution.

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Theoretical Ecology

Background:

  • Biodiversity maintenance in ecosystems is a fundamental ecological question.
  • Evolutionary theory highlights the role of heritable variations in generating species diversity.
  • Both intra- and interspecific variations are considered important for biodiversity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of intraspecific variations in maintaining the stability of ecological communities.
  • To explore the relationship between community size, species diversity, and intraspecific variation.
  • To understand how intraspecific variation interacts with interspecific diversity in evolutionary processes.

Main Methods:

  • Development and analysis of a food web model.
  • Computational modeling to assess community stability under varying conditions.
  • Examination of the impact of multiple variable traits on community dynamics.

Main Results:

  • Intraspecific variations, driven by natural selection, are critical for stabilizing large, diverse species communities.
  • Larger ecological communities necessitate higher levels of intraspecific variation for their maintenance.
  • Community stability is significantly enhanced when multiple traits exhibit variation.

Conclusions:

  • Intraspecific diversity plays a vital role in maintaining ecological community stability, particularly in larger systems.
  • The study suggests a reciprocal relationship where intra- and interspecific diversity may co-evolve and support each other.
  • These findings underscore the importance of intraspecific variation for evolutionary resilience and ecosystem function.