Question

In three to five sentences explain how resource scarcity, competition, and the survival of organisms are connected.(4 points)

Answer 1

When resources (food, water, shelter, mates) become scarce, individuals and species must compete to obtain what they need. Competition—both within a species (intraspecific) and between species (interspecific)—reduces the amount of resources available per individual, lowering survival and reproductive success for some. Those individuals with traits that give an advantage in the struggle are more likely to survive and reproduce, so natural selection favors those adaptations. Over time this competition helps set population sizes and community structure by determining which organisms persist, move away, or die out.