Question

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

Answer 1

Resource scarcity—limited availability of essentials like food, water, shelter, and mates—directly limits how many individuals an environment can support. When resources are scarce, individuals and species compete, which raises mortality and lowers reproductive success for those that lose out. Traits that help organisms find, use, or conserve scarce resources are favored, so natural selection and adaptation change populations over time. If scarcity is severe or prolonged, populations shrink, migrate, or face local extinction as they exceed the environment’s carrying capacity.