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The ontogenetic stoichiometric bottleneck stabilizes herbivore–autotroph dynamics
Author(s) -
Nakazawa Takefumi
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
ecological research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.628
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1440-1703
pISSN - 0912-3814
DOI - 10.1007/s11284-010-0752-9
Subject(s) - ecological stoichiometry , herbivore , autotroph , nutrient , biology , population , ecology , daphnia , ontogeny , juvenile , bottleneck , zooplankton , sociology , bacteria , computer science , embedded system , genetics , demography
In the ecological stoichiometry theory of population dynamics, ontogenetic changes in nutrient demand have been ignored. Here, I studied a stage‐structured Daphnia –algae herbivore–autotroph model, in which the juveniles of the herbivore had a higher nutrient (phosphorous) demand for maturation than the adults for reproduction. The model predicted that while an increase in the juvenile nutrient demand (i.e., ontogenetic stoichiometric bottleneck) affects stage‐specific performances in complex ways through nutrient dynamics and resource quality, in general it has stabilizing effects on the population dynamics.