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Related Concept Videos

What is Natural Selection?01:32

What is Natural Selection?

115.8K
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

Types of Selection

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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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Limits to Natural Selection01:38

Limits to Natural Selection

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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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Natural Selection and Adaptation01:15

Natural Selection and Adaptation

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Natural selection, a fundamental concept in evolutionary biology, is the mechanism by which evolution is driven, favoring organisms that are best adapted to their environments. This process enhances their chances of survival and reproduction. Adaptation, a key outcome of this process, involves genetic modifications that optimize an organism's functionality under specific environmental challenges, such as extreme cold or thinner air at high altitudes.
Beyond physical adaptations,...
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Natural Selection and Mating Preferences01:06

Natural Selection and Mating Preferences

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The principle of natural selection posits that organisms better adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. This principle is closely intertwined with mating preferences, a key aspect of sexual selection, which evolutionary psychologists believe is driven by instincts to propagate one's genes. Such instincts significantly influence mating behaviors and preferences between genders.
Females, due to their biological roles in conception, pregnancy, and nursing,...
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Frequency-dependent Selection01:21

Frequency-dependent Selection

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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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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 26, 2025

Resurrection of Dormant Daphnia magna: Protocol and Applications
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Resurrection of Dormant Daphnia magna: Protocol and Applications

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When does natural selection take place?

Geerat J Vermeij1

  • 1Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Davis, CA, United States.

Evolution; International Journal of Organic Evolution
|June 14, 2023
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Natural selection rarely drives evolutionary adaptation. Organisms typically function within safe limits, with intense, intermittent challenges from factors like predators or extreme weather being key drivers of adaptation.

Keywords:
agencynatural selectionsafety factors

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Ecology
  • Organismal Biology

Background:

  • Studies show inconsistent links between organismal performance and adaptive specialization.
  • This inconsistency raises questions about the frequency and effectiveness of natural selection in maintaining adaptations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate when and how natural selection operates to maintain or improve adapted states.
  • To propose a new perspective on the intermittent nature of selective pressures.

Main Methods:

  • Conceptual analysis of existing studies on form, function, and adaptation.
  • Theoretical framework suggesting organisms operate within safety factors.

Main Results:

  • Most organisms function within their capacities, not at their limits, most of the time.
  • Selective events that test an organism's limits are discrete and intermittent, not chronic.

Conclusions:

  • Everyday life generally does not impose selective pressures.
  • Focusing on the intensity and frequency of rare, intermittent selective events (e.g., predation, competition, extreme weather) is crucial for understanding natural selection and adaptation.