Overproduction of Offspring
- The number of offspring, or young, produced in each breeding event differs between species
- Some species produce small numbers of young, e.g. elephants usually give birth to just one baby per pregnancy
- Some species produce many offspring e.g. some species of ant can lay 3-4 million eggs in one go
- It is more usual for organisms to produce multiple offspring, to the extent that there are more offspring produced than can be supported by the surrounding environment
- Darwin noticed this, and named the phenomenon 'overproduction of offspring'
- Overproduction of offspring means that there is always competition for resources