How does natural selection contribute to speciation?

Natural selection plays a critical role in speciation by favoring traits that lead to reproductive isolation within populations. This can occur when certain adaptations make a population better suited to its environment, thereby enabling individuals with those traits to survive and reproduce more successfully. Over time, these adaptations may cause changes in behavior, mating preferences, or physical characteristics that prevent interbreeding between groups, even if they live in the same area.

When reproductive isolation occurs, the gene pools of the diverging populations become increasingly distinct. This can lead to the development of new species as the populations adapt to their unique environments or ways of life. By promoting traits that enhance survival and reproduction within specific ecological niches, natural selection effectively drives the process of speciation.