Which type of natural selection is most likely to be involved in the formation of new species?

Answer 1

It sometimes does but not always. A great deal of evolution by natural selection can happen without the formation of new species. Natural selection is only the process of adaptation within species, and we see many examples of that. Under some circumstances natural selection does play a role in the origin of new species, by which I mean a splitting of one species lineage into two different lineages that do not interbreed with one another - for example, the splitting of one ancestral primate lineage into one that became today's chimpanzee and the other that became the hominid line resulting in our own species. The process of splitting and becoming reproductively isolated, that is, incapable of breeding with one another, can often involve natural selection but perhaps not always.

Answer 2

Directional selection could certainly contribute to the evolution of a new species--other factors are likely to come into play, however. For speciation to occur, one of the most important factors is reproductive isolation. Reproductive isolation is divided into two categories: prezygotic barriers and postzygotic barriers. As the names suggest, these are divided according to whether they prevent the formation of a zygote (prezygotic barriers) or whether they prevent a zygote from developing into an adult animal capable of reproducing.

If two populations of a species (we'll call them A and B) are found in different locations, such that cross-breeding between the two populations do not occur, and if the two different locations exert different selective pressures on the populations, these two populations may eventually no longer be able to interbreed, and thus become different species.

If the environment of group A selects for larger creatures, group A will become bigger over time. If the environment of group B selects for smaller creatures, group B will become smaller over time. Given enough time, the two populations may reach differing sizes that no longer allow them to mate in the wild. Over time, various other mutations are likely to accumulate in the two populations, and they will become more and more distinct.

Answer 3

Habitat destruction, introduction of exotic species, and overexploitation can all lead to...

Answer 4

Disruptive selection.

Answer 5

disruptive selection

Answer 6

Natural selection