BRAINCAKEAdaptation
An adaptation is a feature of an organism that increases its chance of survival and reproduction in its environment. Organisms that are well adapted are more likely to pass on their alleles, so they are said to have high fitness.
Adaptations are produced over many generations by natural selection. Individuals that happen to have alleles giving a useful feature survive and reproduce more, so the feature becomes more common in the population. Adaptations are inherited, which means they are passed on to offspring.
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Key terms in this lesson
- fitness
- An organism's ability to survive and reproduce successfully in its environment, passing on its alleles to the next generation.
More in Natural Selection
- The Theory of Evolution
- Neo-Darwinism
- Anatomical Adaptation
- Physiological Adaptation
- Behavioural Adaptation
- Grayling Butterflies
- Fungal Carnivores
- The Same Species in Different Environments
All 29 lessons in Natural Selection · All Edexcel AS-level Biology topics