What can often result from intense intraspecific competition?

Intense intraspecific competition occurs when members of the same species compete for limited resources, such as food, space, and mates. This competition can lead to the survival of individuals that are better adapted to the specific challenges of their environment, which reinforces the principle of natural selection. As a result, those individuals that can outcompete others for available resources are more likely to thrive and reproduce, passing on their advantageous traits to the next generation. This process enhances the overall fitness of the population by ensuring that the most competitive individuals survive and reproduce.

While resource depletion can be a consequence of intense competition, the immediate result is often the enhanced survival of the fittest, as competition directly selects for the individuals best suited to the environmental pressures at hand. This ultimately shapes the characteristics of the population over time.