Age-related changes in somatic condition and reproduction in the Eurasian beaver: Resource history influences onset of reproductive senescence.

ABSTRACT: Using 15 years of data from a stable population of wild Eurasian beavers (Castor fiber), we examine how annual and lifetime access to food resources affect individual age-related changes in reproduction and somatic condition. We found an age-related decline in annual maternal reproductive output, after a peak at age 5-6. Rainfall, an established negative proxy of annual resource availability for beavers, was consistently associated with lower reproductive output for females of all ages. In contrast, breeding territory quality, as a measure of local resource history over reproductive lifetimes, caused differences in individual patterns of reproductive senescence; animals from lower quality territories senesced when younger. Litter size was unrelated to maternal age, although adult body weig

SUBMITTER: Campbell RD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5716577 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature