Final answer:
Differentiation is the process by which populations separate and develop new traits for specific habitats. Adaptation is the heritable trait that aids the survival and reproduction of an organism in its present environment. Finch beak variations are an example of differentiation resulting in adaptations to the availability of food sources.
Step-by-step explanation:
A heritable trait that aids the survival and reproduction of an organism in its present environment is called adaptation. When populations separate and develop new traits for specific habitats, it is referred to as differentiation. This occurs when a change in the range of genetic variation over time increases or maintains the match of a population with its environment. An example of this process is seen in the variations in finch beak sizes and shapes, which provide adaptations to different food sources.
Adaptation is the process where populations separate and develop new traits for specific habitats, a result of vicariance allopatric speciation due to habitat isolation and the forces of natural selection, mutation, and genetic drift.
When populations separate and develop new traits for specific habitats, they undergo a process known as adaptation. This situation can also be described by a concept known as vicariance allopatric speciation, where environmental factors like habitat isolation cause organisms of the same species to evolve separately. The cricket population that diverges after a flood provides an example of this. These separated populations adapt to their new environment through natural selection, mutation, and genetic drift, leading to evolutionary changes that enhance their survival and reproduction in the new habitat.
Adaptation is the heritable trait that aids the survival and reproduction of an organism in its present environment. Finch beak variations are an example of differentiation resulting in adaptations to the availability of food sources.