> Life dies out if it over-consumes from its environment, so "by evolution" the life that survives _does_ "restrain itself for the next generation" in a sense.
Dawkins deconstructs this argument in The Selfish Gene. Basically, if you restrain yourself, you put your competitors in advantageous position to consume these resources. They will have more children and their non-restraining genes will win.
We have seen ecosystems destroyed by unchecked invasive species - this is especially visible for islands due to their limited biodiversity. Even reindeers introduced on island without natural predators ate everything until they died out. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Matthew_Island
Dawkins deconstructs this argument in The Selfish Gene. Basically, if you restrain yourself, you put your competitors in advantageous position to consume these resources. They will have more children and their non-restraining genes will win.
We have seen ecosystems destroyed by unchecked invasive species - this is especially visible for islands due to their limited biodiversity. Even reindeers introduced on island without natural predators ate everything until they died out. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Matthew_Island