What do simple models reveal about the population dynamics of a cooperatively breeding species?
What do simple models reveal about the population dynamics of a cooperatively breeding species?
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DOI：
10.1111/j.1600-0706.2010.18952.x
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发表时间：
2011-05-01
期刊：
影响因子：
3.4
通讯作者：
Clutton-Brock, T. H.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Bateman, A. W.;Coulson, T.;Clutton-Brock, T. H.
对合作繁殖物种的研究表明，它们的种群动态不同于传统育种者。合作者的群体被组织成群体，群体水平的Allee效应可能很常见。我们评估的能力的现象学模型，缺乏明确的群体结构，描述合作猫鼬Suricata suricatta的人口动态，我们评估潜在的Allee效应在人口水平。使用最大似然模型拟合和信息理论模型选择，适用于时间序列数据从野生猫鼬人口，我们发现简单的模型，将降雨量和传统的密度依赖是最吝啬的模型考虑。检测没有人口水平的Allee效应，我们得出结论，明确考虑人口结构将是关键，以了解人口动态背后的合作育种物种的机制。
Research on cooperatively breeding species has shown that their population dynamics differ from those of conventional breeders. Populations of cooperators are structured into groups, and group-level Allee effects are likely common. We assess the ability of phenomenological models, lacking explicit group structure, to describe population dynamics in cooperative meerkats Suricata suricatta, and we assess potential Allee effects at the population level. Using maximum likelihood model fitting and information theoretic model selection, applied to time series data from a wild meerkat population, we find simple models that incorporate rainfall and conventional density dependence to be the most parsimonious of the models considered. Detecting no population-level Allee effect, we conclude that explicit consideration of population structure will be key to understanding the mechanisms behind population dynamics in cooperatively breeding species.