Question

Under what conditions is generalization favored over specialization and vice versa. Explain why those conditions lead to specialization or generalization.

Answer 1

Generalization is preferred in scenarios where the availability of resources is low, whereas specialization is preferred when a particular resource is abundunt and there is no competition for the given resource.

Specialist species occur when the consumption niche of a particular resource is empty. When this happens, the organisms that are present in the environment become specialized in utilizing that resource. However, when competition over resources between species is present, most species tend to remain generalists so alternate resources are always available.