In natural selection why do animals die?
Why do some animals die while others thrive?
Why do phenotypes of a population change?
In natural selection, animals may die due to a variety of factors such as predation, disease, competition for resources, environmental changes, or simply reaching the end of their natural lifespan. The main driving force behind this is the struggle for survival and reproduction.
Some animals thrive while others die because the traits they possess give them an advantage in their specific environment. These advantageous traits can be physical characteristics, behaviors, or physiological adaptations that help them survive and reproduce more successfully. Animals with these traits are more likely to pass on their genes to the next generation, increasing the prevalence of those traits in the population over time.
The phenotypes of a population change through natural selection as certain traits become more or less common due to their impact on an animal's survival and reproductive success. The genetic variations that exist within a population provide the raw material for natural selection to act upon. When individuals with certain traits have better survival or reproductive success, those traits become more prevalent in the population over time, leading to changes in the overall phenotype. This process is driven by the differential reproductive success of individuals with different traits, leading to the gradual accumulation of favorable traits in a population.