Variation in growth form and precocity at birth in eutherian mammals
Open Access
- 22 June 1997
- journal article
- Published by The Royal Society in Proceedings Of The Royal Society B-Biological Sciences
- Vol. 264 (1383), 859-868
- https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.1997.0120
Abstract
Using the flexible Chapman—Richards model for describing the growth curves from birth to adulthood of 69 species of eutherian mammals, we demonstrate that growth form differs among eutherian mammals. Thereby the commonly used Gompertz model can no longer be considered as the general model for describing mammalian growth. Precocial mammals have their peak growth rate earlier in the growth process than altricial mammals. However, the position on the altricial—precocial continuum accounts for most growth–form differences only between mammalian lineages. Within mammalian genera differences in growth form are not related to precocity at birth. This inidicates that growth form may have been associated with precocity at birth early in mammalian evolution, when broad patterns of body development radiated. We discuss four non–exclusive interpretations to account for the role of precocity at birth on the observed variation in growth form among mammals. Precocial and altricial mammals could differ according to (i) the distribution of energy output by the mother, (ii) the ability of the young to assimilate the milk yield, (iii) the allocation of energy by the young between competing functions and (iv) the position of birth between conception and attainment of physical maturity.Keywords
This publication has 32 references indexed in Scilit:
- Roe Deer Survival Patterns: A Comparative Analysis of Contrasting PopulationsJournal of Animal Ecology, 1993
- Suckling, weaning, and growth in captive woodland caribouCanadian Journal of Zoology, 1992
- Acquisition and Allocation of Resources: Genetic (CO) Variances, Selection, and Life HistoriesThe American Naturalist, 1992
- Comparative Reproductive Strategies of Altricial and Precocial Eutherian MammalsFunctional Ecology, 1992
- Comparative methods for explaining adaptationsNature, 1991
- An Analysis of Demographic Tactics in Birds and MammalsOikos, 1989
- Early Development and Population Dynamics in Red Deer. I. Density-Dependent Effects on Juvenile SurvivalJournal of Animal Ecology, 1987
- Phylogenies and the Comparative MethodThe American Naturalist, 1985
- Gestation period, neonatal size and maternal investment in placental mammalsNature, 1985
- On the Evolution and Adaptive Significance of Postnatal Growth Rates in the Terrestrial VertebratesThe Quarterly Review of Biology, 1978