The usage of individual-oriented model in studies on the role of the maternal effect in the reproductive switch in Cladocera
Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Universitetskaya nab., 1, St. Petersburg 119034, Russia
e-mail: model@zin.ru
An individual-oriented model of the population of Daphnia longispina, an abundant zooplankton species in lakes and temporary water bodies of the Palaearctic temperate zone, is described. The concept of the model is based on the growth and reproduction potential of an individual and its ability to switch from parthenogenesis to gamogenesis, which is determined by the life conditions of three successive generations. The model was used for testing hypotheses on the role of maternal effect in the population dynamics of Daphnia. Several important conclusions are made, including the verification of the importance of this phenomenon for the seasonal adaptations in crustaceans. The possibility of maternal effect accumulation in a series of successive generations probably increases the tolerance of populations to annual oscillations of environmental factors. The model affirms the role of the maternal effect, along with the interpopulational polymorphism, as a mechanism providing for the stability of biological systems at the species (population) level.
