The key difference between spatial sorting and natural selection is that special sorting filters the genotypes based on the dispersal rate while natural selection filters the genotypes based on the reproductive rate.
Traits evolve through generations, facilitating the survival and reproduction of organisms. Natural selection is the basic mechanism of evolution. Spatial sorting is also a mechanism that is evolutionarily important. Spatial sorting operates through space, while natural selection operates through time.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Spatial Sorting
3. What is Natural Selection
4. Similarities – Spatial Sorting and Natural Selection
5. Spatial Sorting vs Natural Selection in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Spatial Sorting vs Natural Selection
What is Spatial Sorting?
Spatial sorting is a mechanism of evolution that filters the genotypes on the basis of dispersal rate. Therefore, it operates to filter the genotypes through space. Traits or genes related to dispersal are the main concern in this phenomenon. The success of dispersal or the rate of dispersal of an organism depends on several traits such as speed, endurance, and directional movement. Organisms that have the ability of fast dispersing will breed before individuals that disperse slowly. Therefore, the evolving population has more fast dispersing offspring. Successive generations evolve faster and faster dispersal by the colocation of such traits.
What is Natural Selection?
Natural selection is a key mechanism of evolution developed by Charles Darwin in 1859. It filters genotypes through time. It is related to the concept of differential lifetime reproductive success. Natural selection filters organisms based on reproductive rate. As a result of natural selection, populations of living organisms become adapted to their environments with time.
Figure 01: Natural Selection
According to the theory of natural selection, individuals that possess traits better suited to the environment than others are more likely to survive and reproduce. They pass these adaptive traits to their offspring. Likewise, through natural selection, favourable traits are passed from generation to generation. Natural selection explains how different life forms developed from a common ancestor over time.
What are the Similarities Between Spatial Sorting and Natural Selection?
- Spatial sorting and natural selection are two mechanisms of evolution.
- These two phenomena interact with each other strongly.
- Both natural selection and special sorting happen in every generation.
- They require heritable variation.
- Both result in deterministic shifts in phenotypic attributes.
What is the Difference Between Spatial Sorting and Natural Selection?
Spatial sorting is an evolutionary mechanism that operates to filter the genotypes based on their dispersal rate. On the other hand, natural selection is a key mechanism of evolution that operates to filter the genotypes based on their reproductive rate. So, this is the key difference between spatial sorting and natural selection. Moreover, spatial sorting filters the organisms through space while natural selection filters the organisms through time.
The following figure summarizes the difference between spatial sorting and natural selection in tabular form for side by side comparison.
Summary – Spatial Sorting vs Natural Selection
Spatial sorting filters out organisms through space while natural selection filters out organisms through time. Dispersal rate is the main concern in spatial sorting while reproductive rate is the main concern in natural selection. Thus, this is the summary of the difference between spatial sorting and natural selection. Both spatial sorting and natural selection interact with each other strongly in evolution. Therefore, genotypes having both temporal and spatial aspects to their fitness successfully appear and evolve in successive generations. Both mechanisms influence the evolution of traits over generations.
Reference:
Shine, Richard, et al. “An Evolutionary Process That Assembles Phenotypes through Space Rather than through Time.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, National Academy of Sciences, 5 Apr. 2011.
2. “Natural Selection.” National Geographic Society, 7 Sept. 2019.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Darwin’s finches by Gould” By John Gould (14.Sep.1804 – 3.Feb.1881) – From “Voyage of the Beagle” as found on Biodiversity Heritage Library (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia