Anthony R E Sinclair, John P Parkes
Centre for Biodiversity Research, 6270 University Boulevard University of British Columbia, Vancouver V6T 1Z4, Canada.
J Anim Ecol. 2008 Jul;77(4):635-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2656.2008.01425.x.
An insular population of white-tailed deer Odocoileus virginianus introduced in 1896 to predator-free Anticosti Island, Quebec, has caused long-term changes in the plant community. Food quality declined as did body weight. Although different parameters of reproduction changed, overall reproductive rates remained similar, thus maintaining deer density and promoting further change in habitat. These results show (i) long-term feedbacks on carrying capacity, (ii) the mechanism for reduction of body mass, and (iii) the lack of strong reduction in reproductive rates to regulate the population at high density, a feature of Eutherians. They are relevant to mechanisms determining the evolution of vertebrate body sizes.
1896年引入魁北克无捕食者的安蒂科斯蒂岛的白尾鹿（Odocoileus virginianus）孤岛种群，已导致植物群落发生长期变化。食物质量下降，体重也随之下降。尽管繁殖的不同参数发生了变化，但总体繁殖率仍保持相似，从而维持了鹿的密度，并促使栖息地进一步改变。这些结果表明：（i）对承载能力的长期反馈；（ii）体重减轻的机制；（iii）在高密度下缺乏强有力的繁殖率降低来调节种群数量，这是真兽亚纲动物的一个特征。它们与决定脊椎动物体型进化的机制相关。
