Citation
Experimentally induced life-history evolution in a natural population
TL;DR
High-predation guppies: early maturity (60 days), many small offspring, 60% reproduction allocation
Reznick's Trinidad guppy experiments provide the most famous empirical demonstration of life history trade-offs and rapid evolution of allocation strategies. By transplanting guppies between high-predation (pike cichlid) and low-predation (killifish) streams, he showed that allocation strategy evolves within 5-10 generations (18 months) to match environment. This proves that allocation is not fixed but adaptive - a key insight for businesses that must reallocate when competitive environments shift.
Key Findings from Reznick (1990)
- High-predation guppies: early maturity (60 days), many small offspring, 60% reproduction allocation
- Low-predation guppies: late maturity (90 days), fewer large offspring, 30% reproduction allocation
- Transplanted guppies evolved to match new environment within 18 months
- Allocation strategy is adaptive to environmental mortality rates