AP BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Natural selection is a process that favors heritable traits that increase the survival chances of an organism, allowing the organism to reproduce more!

Detailed explanation-2: -Genetic variations that alter gene activity or protein function can introduce different traits in an organism. If a trait is advantageous and helps the individual survive and reproduce, the genetic variation is more likely to be passed to the next generation (a process known as natural selection).

Detailed explanation-3: -Individuals with adaptive traits-traits that give them some advantage-are more likely to survive and reproduce. These individuals then pass the adaptive traits on to their offspring. Over time, these advantageous traits become more common in the population.

Detailed explanation-4: -Species can change over time in response to changes in environmental conditions through adaptation by natural selection acting over generations. Traits that support successful survival and reproduction in the new environment become more common.

Detailed explanation-5: -1. Mutations are the source of new variation. Natural selection itself does not create new traits; it only changes the proportion of variation that is already present in the population. The repeated two-step interaction of these processes is what leads to the evolution of novel adaptive features.