Question

there are 2 types of worms: worms that eat at night (nocturnal) and worms that eat during the day (diurnal). the birds eat during the day and seem to be eating only the diurnal worms. the nocturnal worms are in their burrows during this time. each spring when the worms reproduce, they have about 500 babies but only 100 of these 500 ever become old enough to reproduce. what worm has natural selection selected against? for? darwin's 5 points: identify the 5 points in the scenario above. population has variations. some variations are favorable. more offspring are produced than survive. those that survive have favorable traits. a population will change over time.

Answer 1

Natural selection has selected against the diurnal worms due to predation by birds, and for the nocturnal worms which avoid predation, demonstrating Darwin's five points: variation in populations, the favorability of some variations, overproduction of offspring, survival of individuals with favorable traits, and population changes over time.

Step-by-step explanation:

Natural Selection in Diurnal and Nocturnal Worms

In the scenario described, natural selection has selected against the diurnal worms because they are being preyed upon by birds during the day. The nocturnal worms, which eat at night and hide from birds during the day, have been selected for since they are not being preyed upon as much and are therefore more likely to survive and reproduce.

Identifying Charles Darwin's five points of natural selection in the situation:

• Population has variations: There are two types of worms with different feeding habits (nocturnal and diurnal).
• Some variations are favorable: Nocturnal behavior is a favorable trait since it allows the worms to avoid predation by birds during the day.
• More offspring are produced than survive: Each worm reproduces a large number of offspring, but only a fraction survives to reproductive age.
• Those that survive to reproductive age typically have favorable traits, such as nocturnal behavior that increases their chances of avoiding daytime predators.
• Over time, these survival traits will become more common in the population, resulting in a population change.

This example illustrates how the pressures of predation can affect the survival and reproductive success of organisms, driving the process of natural selection.