DEMOGRAPHY

N = births – deaths + immigration - emigration

Life tables
cohort – all individuals born into a
population during a given period

Belding’s ground squirrel

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Survivorship curves
Type I – African mammals
humans

Type II - Belding’s ground squirrels

yellow-bellied marmots
lizards

Type III - ?

Genetics vs environment
Darwin’s finches
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Fecundity
Age at first reproduction
Reproductive senescence
yellow-bellied marmots: mx vs age
Reproductive value: expected # of offspring
for duration of life, beginning at a given age

1.8
1.6
1.4
1.2
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
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Reproductive value
Red deer: between Type I and II
Elk in Yellowstone: effects of hunters and wolves
Spiny dogfish: Type III
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Constructing life tables
1. Dynamic (= cohort) – gives nx series

2. Time-specific – but population must be stable

a. age structure of animals alive – gives nx series
b. age structure of animals dying – gives dx series
c. age-specific survival – gives qx series
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Age structure
Voles – “young” age structure
An increasing population has a young age structure because of high reproduction,
but a young age structure does not necessarily mean an increasing population.

So: usually indicates increasing population, but need data on survival to be sure.
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Age structure
Feral sheep
Island foxes
California condors – ”senescent” age structure
baobab trees
Humans