OLM8.4. Calculation of the optimal clutch size in the great tit population of Wytham Wood
In Ch8Tradeoff we presented the results of a long-term study of great tits (Parus major) in Wytham Woods, Oxford (Figure 8.19, p.157). We concluded that the close correspondence of the optimal clutch size calculated from the number (n) and the survival rate (s) of nestlings and the mean clutch size in the population observed for 19-years is due to the n–s trade-off, that is, to the nestling provisioning capacity of the feeding parental birds. We calculate the optimal clutch size in this OLM.