Measuring the cost of reproduction

Summary

The timing of the first two broods and the number and size of offspring in each was measured in a series of three experiments for monoclonal cultures of the cladoceran Daphnia pulex reared under standard conditions of ration, temperature and photoperiod. The pattern of total correlations between pairs of life-history variables did not in general support predictions made by hypotheses of reproductive cost. A partial correlation analysis, involving initial size and subsequent growth as well as the life history variables themselves, was performed in an attempt to avoid potential fallacies introduced by the use of total correlations. The only consistent effect found was a positive relationship between the age at reproductive maturity and the mean size of offspring in the first brood. The structure of this segment of the life history is strongly influenced by interactions between size and reproduction, to an extent that precludes the use of simple optimality models.