Synonyms
Definition
The number of gametes produced by an organism
Introduction
For all animals, fecundity is a measure of gamete production expressing the number of eggs or sperm produced by females and males, respectively. In that respect, fecundity is a quantitative variable differing from “fertility” and “reproductive potential” which are more general and qualitative terms expressing an individual’s reproductive success and its capacity to produce gametes and viable embryos, respectively. Fecundity measurements are of particular importance in animal biology and ecology since they are used for assessing population reproductive dynamics and energetics and for estimating their annual reproductive output and how it is linked to recruitment and population growth (Stearns 1992). In addition, measurements of fecundity can be implemented in the appraisal of biomass of ecologically or socially important species, especially in commercial...
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References
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Ganias, K. (2018). Fecundity. In: Vonk, J., Shackelford, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Animal Cognition and Behavior. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-47829-6_221-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-47829-6_221-1
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