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Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
agricultural and biological sciences
Low demographic variability in wild primate populations: Fitness impacts of variation, covariation, and serial correlation in vital rates
American Naturalist, Volume 177, No. 1, Year 2011
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Description
In a stochastic environment, long-term fitness can be influenced by variation, covariation, and serial correlation in vital rates (survival and fertility). Yet no study of an animal population has parsed the contributions of these three aspects of variability to long-term fitness. We do so using a unique database that includes complete life-history information for wild-living individuals of seven primate species that have been the subjects of long-term (22-45 years) behavioral studies. Overall, the estimated levels of vital rate variation had only minor effects on long-term fitness, and the effects of vital rate covariation and serial correlation were even weaker. To explore why, we compared estimated variances of adult survival in primates with values for other vertebrates in the literature and found that adult survival is significantly less variable in primates than it is in the other vertebrates. Finally, we tested the prediction that adult survival, because it more strongly influences fitness in a constant environment, will be less variable than newborn survival, and we found only mixed support for the prediction. Our results suggest that wild primates may be buffered against detrimental fitness effects of environmental stochasticity by their highly developed cognitive abilities, social networks, and broad, flexible diets. © 2010 by The University of Chicago.
Authors & Co-Authors
Morris, William F.
United States, Durham
Duke University
Altmann, Jeanne
United States, Princeton
Princeton University
Kenya, Nairobi
National Museums of Kenya
Brockman, Diane K.
United States, Charlotte
The University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Cords, Marina
United States, New York
Columbia University
Fedigan, Linda M.
Canada, Calgary
University of Calgary
Pusey, Anne E.
United States, Durham
Duke University
Stoinski, Tara S.
United States, Atlanta
The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International
Bronikowski, Anne M.
United States, Ames
Iowa State University
Alberts, Susan C.
United States, Durham
Duke University
Kenya, Nairobi
National Museums of Kenya
Strier, Karen B.
United States, Madison
University of Wisconsin-madison
Statistics
Citations: 89
Authors: 10
Affiliations: 9
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1086/657443
ISSN:
00030147
Research Areas
Sexual And Reproductive Health
Study Design
Cross Sectional Study