Thank you for the great reply.
I asked that question because it shows how we think, all of us. Which may hinder the reality of what is actually important.
Both are equally important. At different times or better yet under different situations. Both sizes are equal in a set environment. The smaller female produces less offspring, but takes far far less energy to reproduce. The larger female, of course can and does contribute a greater number of offspring when conditions are very good, but doesn't not contribute in poor years, or cannot exist in marginal conditions, peripheral habitats, etc. Reproduction(recruitment) is based on consumed energy. Smaller individuals require less, larger individuals require more.
There is another side of the coin as well, larger individuals within a population, can withstand longer periods of poor condtions as they can store more energy. So all the sizes from the smallest to the largest has its place in their reproductive strategies. Its important to understand, that they attack recruitment in many different ways, not one.
When talking about Selection pressures, we have to areas, the genotype and the phenotype. With phenotype is what we currently see. As my partner explains, its the animal you observe, pick up, pickle, etc, its what you found. And it does not matter if its normal or not. Its the result of current selection. Genotype, is the genetic possibilities a animal carries, and is a product of much more then current pressures. Past selection pressures, geneflow, its like a history book of that animal. The genotype is slow to change and stable. The phenotype, responds quickly to temporary conditions. The problem with genotype is, its a product of the past and most of the conditions are not known and science cannot prove them, so our understanding is academic, as in, unproven, theoretical, etc. part one

[ Reply To This Message ] [ Subscribe to this Thread ] [ Hide Replies ]