For an organism to be successful, it needs to be well adapted. Adaptations for survival are the ways in which an organism is suited to life in a particular environment or habitat. These adaptations can be characteristics, behaviour or both. Organisms that are perfectly adapted to a particular way of life in a habitat will change little over long periods of time, unless something changes. Slow changes in organisms are made through natural selection. In any population of plants or animals, genetic mutations will occur. Badly (or not so well) adapted mutations are less likely to survive and... Show more

For an organism to be successful, it needs to be well adapted. Adaptations for survival are the ways in which an organism is suited to life in a particular environment or habitat. These adaptations can be characteristics, behaviour or both. Organisms that are perfectly adapted to a particular way of life in a habitat will change little over long periods of time, unless something changes.

Slow changes in organisms are made through natural selection. In any population of plants or animals, genetic mutations will occur. Badly (or not so well) adapted mutations are less likely to survive and breed but well adapted mutations will do both. The new characteristics that make them better adapted than their competitors are therefore passed on to their offspring.

Natural selection and adaptation through inherited characteristics occurs slowly but behavioural adaptations can arise over much shorter time periods. Environmental and other changes may affect the behaviour and distribution of living organisms causing significant changes in populations - plants not suited to the new conditions will die and animals will either die or move elswhere. Population size depends on factors including competition, predation and human influences.

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