Question

If a trait is not well adapted to current local conditions, what might be the reasons why it is not, and how might one check to see which of those reason(s) is correct?

Answer 1

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This article is about the evolutionary process. For other uses, see Adaptation (disambiguation).

Not to be confused with Adoption or Acclimatization.

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An adaptation, also called an adaptive trait, in biology is a trait with a current functional role in the life history of an organism that is maintained and evolved by means of natural selection. Adaptation refers to both the current state of being adapted and to the dynamic evolutionary process that leads to the adaptation. Adaptations contribute to the fitness and survival of individuals. Organisms face a succession of environmental challenges as they grow and develop and are equipped with an adaptive plasticity as the phenotype of traits develop in response to the imposed conditions. The developmental norm of reaction for any given trait is essential to the correction of adaptation as it affords a kind of biological insurance or resilience to varying enviro
Aral Sea 1989-2008.jpg
The Aral Sea in 1989 (left) and 2008 (right)


Location
Kazakhstan - Uzbekistan,
Central Asia

Coordinates
45°N 60°ECoordinates: 45°N 60°E

Type
endorheic, natural lake, reservoir (North)

Primary inflows
North: Syr Darya
South: groundwater only
(previously the Amu Darya)

Catchment area
1,549,000 km2 (598,100 sq mi)

Basin countries
Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan



Surface area
17,160 km2 (6,626 sq mi)
(2004, four lakes)
28,687 km2 (11,076 sq mi)
(1998, two lakes)
68,000 km2 (26,300 sq mi)
(1960, one lake)
North:
3,300 km2 (1,270 sq mi) (2008)
South:
3,500 km2 (1,350 sq mi) (2005)

Average depth
North: 8.7 m (29 ft) (2007)[citation needed]
South: 14–15 m (46–49 ft)(2005)

Max. depth
North:
42 m (138 ft) (2008)[1]
30 m (98 ft) (2003)
South:
37–40 m (121–131 ft) (2005)
102 m (335 ft) (1989)

Water volume
North: 27 km3 (6 cu mi) (2007)[citation needed]

Surface elevation
North: 42 m (138 ft) (2007)
South: 29 m (95 ft) (2007)
53.4 m (175 ft) (1960)[2]



Settlements
Aral, Kazakhstan

The Aral Sea (Kazakh: Арал Теңізі Aral Teñizi; Uzbek: Orol Dengizi; Russian: Аральскοе Мοре Aral'skoye Morye; Tajik: Баҳри Арал Bahri Aral; older Persian: دریای خوارزم‎ Daryâ-ye Khârazm) was a lake lying between Kazakhstan (Aktobe and Kyzylorda provinces) in the north and Karakalpakstan, an autonomous region of Uzbekistan, in the south. The name roughly translates as "Sea of Islands", referring to about 1,534 islands that once dotted its waters; in Old Turkic aral means "island" and "thicket".[3]

Formerly one of the four largest lakes in the world with an area of 68,000 km2 (26,300 sq mi), the Aral Sea has been steadily shrinking since the 1960s after the rivers that fed it were diverted by Soviet irrigation projects. By 2007, it had declined to 10% of its original size, splitting into four lakes – the North Aral Sea, the eastern and western basins of the once far larger South Aral Sea, and one smaller lake between the North and South Aral Seas.[4] By 2009, the southeastern lake had disappeared and the southwestern lake had retreated to a thin strip at the extreme west of the former southern sea; in subsequent years, occasional water flows have led to the southeastern lake sometimes being replenished to a small degree.[5] The maximum depth of the North Aral Sea is 42 m (138 ft) (as of 2008).[1]From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia