Which of the following is NOT a component of natural selection?

The correct answer is rooted in understanding the fundamental components of natural selection. Natural selection relies on several key factors, which include competition, variation, and heredity.

Heredity is indeed a crucial element of the evolutionary process because it involves the passing of traits from parents to offspring, allowing favored traits to persist in a population over generations. However, mutation is not a direct component of natural selection itself but a source of genetic variation that can provide the raw material upon which natural selection acts.

The process of natural selection requires variation within a population, as differences among individuals allow certain traits to confer advantages in survival or reproduction. Competition occurs because resources are limited; individuals must compete for survival, leading to differential survival based on traits.

In summary, while mutation contributes to genetic variation and can lead to new traits within a population, it is not a mechanism of natural selection itself. Rather, it is the variations that arise from mutation, along with competition and heredity, that drive the process of natural selection.