Final answer:
Evolutionary fitness is concerned with an organism's ability to survive and reproduce, not physical strength, intelligence, or social dominance. It is a central concept in natural selection, where individuals with favorable traits are more likely to pass on their genetic material. The correct option is B.
Step-by-step explanation:
Evolutionary fitness, also known as Darwinian fitness, is primarily concerned with an organism's ability to survive and reproduce. This concept is at the heart of natural selection, which describes the process by which certain traits become more prevalent within a population over time.
Fitness in an evolutionary sense does not necessarily equate to physical strength or intelligence, but rather the relative ability of an organism to pass on its genetic material to the next generation. A key aspect of fitness is that it is not absolute but relative to the environment; for example, traits that enable a better running speed might increase an individual's fitness if it helps in escaping predators.
Natural selection is the mechanism by which individuals with favorable traits are more likely to survive and reproduce, thereby passing along those advantageous traits. Over time, these traits become more common in the population, leading to evolutionary change.
This is analogous to artificial selection, where breeders select for desirable traits, except that in natural selection, nature rather than humans determines which individuals are more likely to reproduce.
The correct answer to the question is B) Ability to survive and reproduce, as this is what determines an individual's fitness in an evolutionary context.