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Comparing Life Histories

  • Chapter
Evolution of Life

Summary

Traditional interpretations of life history diversity view reproductive rates primarily as consequences of species differences in body size or some other key limiting variable. A more useful approach for understanding life history diversity is to combine optimality theory with comparative data on fertility and mortality schedules, which are likely to vary with habitat. Differences in body size are important in so far as they influence those schedules.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OXI 3PS, UK

    Paul H. Harvey

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  1. Paul H. Harvey
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Nagoya University, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, 464, Japan

    Syozo Osawa Ph.D. (Professor) (Professor)

  2. Department of Medical Chemistry, Kyoto University, Yoshidakonoe-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606, Japan

    Tasuku Honjo M.D., Ph.D. (Professor) (Professor)

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© 1991 Springer-Verlag Tokyo

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Harvey, P.H. (1991). Comparing Life Histories. In: Osawa, S., Honjo, T. (eds) Evolution of Life. Springer, Tokyo. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-68302-5_15

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-68302-5_15

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Tokyo

  • Print ISBN: 978-4-431-68304-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-4-431-68302-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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