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Related Concept Videos

Predator-Prey Interactions02:39

Predator-Prey Interactions

Predators consume prey for energy. Predators that acquire prey and prey that avoid predation both increase their chances of survival and reproduction (i.e., fitness). Routine predator-prey interactions elicit mutual adaptations that improve predator offenses, such as claws, teeth, and speed, as well as prey defenses, including crypsis, aposematism, and mimicry. Thus, predator-prey interactions resemble an evolutionary arms race.Although predation is commonly associated with carnivory, for...
What is Natural Selection?01:32

What is Natural Selection?

Natural selection is an evolutionary process in which individuals with survival-promoting traits reproduce at higher rates. These favorable traits become more common within a population or species. Naturally selected traits initially arise via random genetic mutations. In order for selection to occur, there must be variation within a population, the trait controlling the variation must be heritable, and there must be an evolutionary advantage for variation in the trait.The Theory of Natural...
Life Histories01:29

Life Histories

Constrained by limited energy and resources, organisms must compromise between offspring quantity and parental investment. This trade-off is represented by two primary reproductive strategies; K-strategists produce few offspring but provide substantial parental support, whereas r-strategists produce much progeny that receives little care. These strategies are related to an organism’s survival likelihood across its lifespan, which is represented by a survivorship curve. Three general types of...
Limits to Natural Selection01:38

Limits to Natural Selection

Organisms that are well-adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. However, natural selection does not lead to perfectly adapted organisms. Several factors constrain natural selection.For one, natural selection can only act upon existing genetic variation. Hypothetically, redtusks may enhance elephant survival by deterring ivory-seeking poachers. However, if there are no gene variants—or alleles—for redtusks, natural selection cannot increase the prevalence of...
Optimal Foraging00:48

Optimal Foraging

How animals obtain and eat their food is called foraging behavior. Foraging can include searching for plants and hunting for prey and depends on the species and environment.
Frequency-dependent Selection01:21

Frequency-dependent Selection

When the fitness of a trait is influenced by how common it is (i.e., its frequency) relative to different traits within a population, this is referred to as frequency-dependent selection. Frequency-dependent selection may occur between species or within a single species. This type of selection can either be positive—with more common phenotypes having higher fitness—or negative, with rarer phenotypes conferring increased fitness.Positive Frequency-Dependent SelectionIn positive...

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At-Risk Butterfly Captive Propagation Programs to Enhance Life History Knowledge and Effective Ex Situ Conservation Techniques
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Getting out alive: how predators affect the decision to metamorphose.

Rick A Relyea1

  • 1Department of Biological Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA. relyea@pitt.edu

Oecologia
|March 16, 2007
PubMed
Summary

Predators significantly influence animal metamorphosis through induction, thinning, and selection. Contrary to models, predator cues alone rarely alter metamorphosis timing or size in amphibians, but lethal predators show varied effects.

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Developmental Biology

Background:

  • Metamorphosis is a complex life cycle stage common in animals.
  • Ecological factors, particularly predation, influence the timing and size of metamorphosis.
  • Predators affect prey metamorphosis through induction, thinning, and selection.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To contrast models of metamorphosis.
  • To overview how predators affect larval growth and development.
  • To synthesize studies on amphibian metamorphosis in response to predation.

Main Methods:

  • Reviewed leading models of metamorphosis.
  • Synthesized studies on amphibian larvae exposed to caged and lethal predators.
  • Analyzed effects of induction, thinning, and selection.

Main Results:

  • Caged predators (induction only) rarely altered amphibian metamorphosis timing or size, contradicting theoretical predictions.
  • Lethal predators (induction, thinning, selection) yielded diverse outcomes, influenced by induction vs. thinning importance.
  • Larval predator exposure can have persistent post-metamorphic effects.

Conclusions:

  • Predator-induced metamorphosis is more complex than simple induction models suggest.
  • The interplay of induction, thinning, and selection determines metamorphic outcomes.
  • Further research is needed to understand predator effects on metamorphosis.