What type of selection occurs when certain traits increase an organism's survival and reproduction chances?

The correct answer, directional selection, describes a process where individuals with traits that are advantageous for survival and reproduction are favored over others, leading to a shift in the population's traits over time. In directional selection, the environment exerts pressure that results in the preferential survival of one extreme phenotype. This can occur due to changes in environmental conditions or other factors that give a specific trait a distinct advantage, thus enhancing the organism's overall fitness.

For example, if a population of organisms experiences changes in climate that favor individuals with longer beaks for accessing food, those with longer beaks will have higher survival rates and reproductive success. Over generations, this will lead to an increase in the frequency of longer beaks within the population.

Disruptive selection and stabilizing selection refer to different dynamics. Disruptive selection favors individuals at both extremes of a phenotype range, while stabilizing selection favors intermediate traits, reducing variation. Artificial selection, on the other hand, is a human-driven process where specific traits are selected by breeders rather than through natural environmental pressures. Thus, directional selection specifically emphasizes the connection between advantageous traits and the increase in survival and reproduction, making it the most suitable answer.