3.4.2 Natural Selection

Survival of the organisms that occupy the largest area in an environment.

Survival of the strongest organisms in an environment.

Survival of the organisms genetically best adapted to the environment.

Elimination of the smallest organisms by the largest organisms.

Individuals cannot change inheritable traits.

Environmental selective pressures only affect groups of individuals and not the individuals themselves.

There are usually no significant differences between the individuals of a population.

Mutations occur so rarely that they are detectable only at the population level.

People choose mating pairs based on desirable characteristics.

The environment favors those individuals with the best phenotypes for survival.

If an anatomical feature is not used for several generations, offspring will cease to inherit that trait.

There is a trend toward homozygous dominant genotypes becoming the most common in the population.