Natural selection. I. Variable environments and uncertain returns on investment.

Area of Science:

• Population Genetics
• Evolutionary Biology
• Quantitative Genetics

Background:

• Previous studies on reproductive success variability often lack a unifying framework.
• This fragmentation leads to incomplete analyses and applications in population studies.
• A clear understanding of variability's structure is crucial for evolutionary and economic theories.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a concise theoretical framework for analyzing variability in reproductive success.
• To elucidate the relationship between relative reproductive success and fitness.
• To describe the hierarchical structure of variability within populations.

Main Methods:

• Theoretical analysis of fitness measures based on relative reproductive success.
• Examination of the hierarchical structure of variability across individual traits and population aggregates.
• Integration of temporal, spatial, and developmental factors influencing variability.

Main Results:

• Fitness is determined by relative reproductive success, creating a diminishing return relationship.
• Variability in reproductive success directly reduces fitness.
• Population variability exhibits a hierarchical structure, influencing allele dynamics and frequency dependence.

Conclusions:

• A unified framework clarifies the structure of population variability and its relation to general theory.
• Understanding relative success and hierarchical variability enhances biological and economic theories of uncertainty.
• This approach provides a foundation for more complete analyses of population dynamics.