Document Type
Article
Publication Title
American Journal of Botany
Publication Date
6-1995
Volume
82
Issue
6
Disciplines
Biology | Life Sciences
Abstract
Life history theory predicts that trade-offs between growth and reproduction should be dictated by a population's mortality schedule. We tested this prediction with Arabis fecunda, a short-lived perennial that occurs in many different habitats in southwest Montana. Individuals produce either or both axillary or terminal inflorescences. Axillary-flowering plants are usually iteroparous and have smaller reproductive bouts, while terminal-flowering plants have larger reproductive bouts, and tend to be semelparous. We recorded size and fecundity of A. fecunda individuals from 1989 to 1993 in three different habitats. There was great variation in demographic and life history traits among the populations. A wide range of life history strategies among populations of A. fecunda is achieved through different proportions of axillary- and terminal-flowering plants. Arabis fecunda demonstrated a lower recruitment rate, higher survivorship, slower growth, and lower annual fecundity at the low-elevation site compared to the high-elevation site. At the low-elevation site population size was more stable, and elasticity analysis of matrix projection models indicated that adult survivorship was the most important demographic parameter contributing to population growth. This association of life history characters conforms to theoretical predictions
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1537-2197.1995.tb15687.x
Rights
© 1995 Botanical Society of America
Recommended Citation
Lesica, P. and Shelly, J.S. (1995), Effects of reproductive mode on demography and life history in Arabis fecunda (Brassicaceae). American Journal of Botany, 82: 752-762. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1537-2197.1995.tb15687.x
