Chapter Objectives

Because all organisms have access to limited energy and other resources, there is a trade-off between the number and size of offspring; those that produce larger offspring are constrained to produce fewer, while those that produce smaller offspring may produce larger numbers.

Where adult survival is lower, organisms begin reproducing at an earlier age and invest a greater proportion of their energy budget into reproduction; where adult survival is higher, organisms defer reproduction to a later age and allocate a smaller proportion of their resources to reproduction.

The great diversity of life histories may be classified on the basis of a few population characteristics, such as fecundity or number of offspring, m_x, survival, l_x and age at reproductive maturity.

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