Includes bibliographical references (pages 332-379).
Individuals and populations / T.H. Clutton-Brock and J.M. Pemberton -- The sheep of St. Kilda / T.H. Clutton-Brock [and others] -- Population dynamics in Soay sheep / T.H. Clutton-Brock [and others] -- Vegetation and sheep population dynamics / M.J. Crawley [and others] -- Parasites and their impact / K. Wilson [and others] -- Mating patterns and male breeding success / J.M. Pemberton [and others] -- Selection on phenotype / J.M. Milner [and others] -- Molecular genetic variation and selection on genotype / J.M. Pemberton [and others] -- Adaptive reproductive strategies / I.R. Stevenson [and others] -- The causes and consequences of instability / T.H. Clutton-Brock -- Appendix 1. The flora of St. Kilda / M.J. Crawley -- Appendix 2. Inheritance of coat colour and horn type in Hirta Soay sheep / D.W. Coltman and J.M. Pemberton -- Appendix 3. How average life tables can mislead / T. Coulson and M.J. Crawley.
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Soay Sheep synthesises one of the most detailed studies of demography and dynamics in a naturally regulated population of mammals. Unlike most other large mammals, the Soay sheep population of Hirta in the St Kilda archipelago show persistent oscillations, sometimes increasing or declining by more than 60% in a year. Soay Sheep explores the causes of these oscillations and their consequences for selection on genetic and phenotypic variation within the population, drawing on studies over nearly twenty years of the life-histories and reproductive careers of many individuals. Covering population dynamics, demography and their effects on selection, energetic and resource limitations on the interaction between sheep and parasites, and the adaptive significance of their reproductive characteristics, it provides unique insights into the regulation of other herbivore populations and the effects of environmental change on selection and adaptation. It will be essential reading for vertebrate ecologists, demographers, evolutionary biologists and behavioural ecologists.
Soay sheep.
0521823005
Mammal populations-- Scotland-- Saint Kilda.
Soay sheep-- Ecology-- Scotland-- Saint Kilda.
Soay sheep-- Selection-- Scotland-- Saint Kilda.
Mammifères-- Populations-- Écosse-- Saint Kilda.
Soay (Race bovine)-- Écologie-- Écosse-- Saint Kilda.
Soay (Race bovine)-- Sélection-- Écosse-- Saint Kilda.