What is Natural Selection?

Natural selection is the process where certain traits or characteristics that are beneficial for an organism’s survival and reproduction are passed down to future generations, while traits or characteristics that are not beneficial are less likely to be passed down. All living things go through this process, which is the primary mechanism for evolution.

Natural selection operates via the process of adaptation, whereby organisms with traits more suited to their surroundings are more likely to survive and procreate, whilst those with traits less suited to their surroundings are less likely to do so.

 This process eventually results in the extinction of some species and the emergence of other ones.

Natural selection occurs at the level of the individual organism, but it also operates at the population level, as the traits of an entire population can change over time in response to environmental pressures. For example, if a population of birds is exposed to predators that can see the colour red, birds that are naturally red may be more likely to be caught and eaten, while birds that are naturally another colour may be less likely to be caught and eaten. As a result, the proportion of red birds in the population may decrease, while the proportion of other-coloured birds may increase.

A fundamental idea in biology, natural selection has been instrumental in helping us understand how life on Earth has evolved.

Because it increases the incidence of advantageous mutations across the generations and eliminates harmful ones because their carriers leave few or no descendants, natural selection moderates the disorganizing impacts of these processes, the preservation of a group of creatures that are best adapted to the physical and biological circumstances of their environment is aided by natural selection, and in some cases, it may even lead to the improvement of those organisms.