Variation and Inheritance | Selection: Survival and Reproduction | Time and Adaptation

Time and Adaptation

In generation after generation, advantageous traits help some individuals survive and reproduce. And these traits are passed on to greater and greater numbers of offspring. After just a few generations or after thousands, depending on the circumstances, such traits become common in the population. The result is a population that is better suited—better adapted-to some aspect of the environment than it was before. Legs once used for walking are modified for use as wings or flippers. Scales used for protection change colors to serve as camouflage.