Kumudinee, Subject Matter Expert at Edumarz.
Solution: Variations are referred to the changes in the characteristics of organisms among the population of the same species or differences among parents and offsprings.
Variations can be important for survival of species as variation can cause some beneficial mutation for survival of an organism during extreme situations.
Furthermore these variations are inheritable and get transmitted into offspring so that the species can occupy well-defined positions in the ecosystem.
Beneficial variations:
Variations can be beneficial or harmful to the species or an individual organism according to niche and environmental factors.
Variations that give some benefit to an organism to survive certain adverse conditions and suitable to particular niche are naturally selected during evolution.
Hence variations are necessary for evolution and natural selection.
Variations are certainly beneficial to species than individuals because sometimes it can cause loss of important traits essential for survival in particular niche.
While in case of variation in species for example if environmental conditions alter abruptly major of the population of certain species get affected and could die but some organisms of the same species survive as they contain favourable mutations to overcome the adverse conditions.