Question

Charles Darwin hypothesized that some individuals would be better equipped for survival than others, and that those that were less equipped would not survive. Darwin formulated this hypothesis based on the work of which scholar?
John Gould, who compared mainland and island finches
Thomas Malthus, who studied population growth

Answer 1

Thomas Malthus, who studied population growth. His idea that populations grow faster than resources available (leading to a "struggle for existence") strongly influenced Darwin's formulation of natural selection.