In
evolutionary biology,
fitness landscapes or
adaptive landscapes (types of
Evolutionary landscapes) are used to visualize the relationship between
genotypes and
reproductive success. It is assumed that every genotype has a well-defined replication rate (often referred to as
fitness). This fitness is the "height" of the landscape. Genotypes which are very similar are said to be "close" to each other, while those that are very different are "far" from each other. The set of all possible genotypes, their degree of similarity, and their related fitness values is then called a fitness landscape. The idea of a fitness landscape is a metaphor to help explain
flawed forms in evolution, including exploits and glitches in animals like their reactions to
supernormal stimuli.