Size-Structured Populations Ecology and Evolution [Paperback]

At last both ecology and evolution are covered in this study on the dynamics of size-structured populations. How does natural selection shape growth patterns and life cycles of individuals, and hence the size-structure of populations? This book will stimulate biologists to look into some important and interesting biological problems from a new angle of approach, concerning: - life history evolution, - intraspecific competition and niche theory, - structure and dynamics of ecological communities.At last both ecology and evolution are covered in this study on the dynamics of size-structured populations. How does natural selection shape growth patterns and life cycles of individuals, and hence the size-structure of populations? This book will stimulate biologists to look into some important and interesting biological problems from a new angle of approach, concerning: - life history evolution, - intraspecific competition and niche theory, - structure and dynamics of ecological communities.Prolog.- Dynamics of Size-Structured Populations: An Overview.- The Evolution of Growth Patterns and Size.- The Evolution of Size in Size-Structured Populations.- 1 Introduction.- 2 An Introduction to Evolutionary Quantitative Genetics.- 2.1 Evolution of the Phenotypic Mean.- 2.2 Measuring the Parameters of Selection and Inheritance.- 3 Growth Trajectories Are Infinite-Dimensional Characters.- 3.1 Means and Covariances of Growth Trajectories.- 3.2 A Genetic Model for the Evolution of Growth Trajectories.- 4 Selection Gradients Acting on Growth Trajectories.- 4.1 The Selection Gradient on Size.- 4.2 Evaluating the Force of Selection Acting on the Growth Trajectory.- 5 The Evolution of Size and Growth in Size-Structured Populations.- 5.1 Evolution Without Constraints.- 5.2 Genetic Constraints on the Evolution of Growth Trajectories.- 5.3 Other Sources of Genetic Constraints.- 6 Conclusions.- 7 References.- Path Analysis of Ontogenetic Data.- 1 Introdlr