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Fecundity, derived from the word fecund, generally refers to the ability to reproduce. In biology
Biology

Biology is a branch of the natural sciences concerned with the study of living organisms and their interaction with each other and their environment ....
 and demography
Demography

Demography is the statistical study of all populations. It can be a very general science that can be applied to any kind of dynamic population, that is, one that changes over time or space ....
, fecundity is the potential reproductive capacity of an organism
Organism

In biology, an organism is any life thing . In at least some form, all organisms are capable of response to stimulus , reproduction, growth and developmental biology, and maintenance of homeostasis as a stable whole....
 or population
Population

File:Population density.pngIn biology, a population is the collection of inter-breeding organisms of a particular species; in sociology, a collection of human beings....
, measured by the number of gamete
Gamete

A gamete is a Cell that fuses with another gamete during fertilization in organisms that sexual reproduction. In species which produce two morphologically distinct types of gametes, and in which each individual produces only one type, a female is any individual which produces the larger type of gamete?called an ovum ?and a male produces th...
s (eggs), seed set or asexual propagules. Fecundity is under both genetic
Genetics

Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of heredity and Genetic variation in living organisms. The fact that living things inherit traits from their parents has been used since prehistoric times to improve crop plants and animals through selective breeding....
 and environmental control, and is the major measure of fitness
Fitness (biology)

Fitness is a central concept in evolution. It describes the capability of an individual of certain genotype to reproduce, and usually is equal to the proportion of the individual's genes in all the genes of the next generation....
. Fecundation is another term for fertilisation
Fertilisation

Fertilisation , is the fusion of gametes to produce a new organism. In animals, the process involves a sperm fusing with an ovum, which eventually leads to the development of an embryo....
. Superfecundity refers to an organism's ability to store another organism's sperm (after copulation) and fertilize its own eggs from that store after a period of time, essentially making it appear as though fertilization occurred without sperm (i.e.






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Fecundity, derived from the word fecund, generally refers to the ability to reproduce. In biology
Biology

Biology is a branch of the natural sciences concerned with the study of living organisms and their interaction with each other and their environment ....
 and demography
Demography

Demography is the statistical study of all populations. It can be a very general science that can be applied to any kind of dynamic population, that is, one that changes over time or space ....
, fecundity is the potential reproductive capacity of an organism
Organism

In biology, an organism is any life thing . In at least some form, all organisms are capable of response to stimulus , reproduction, growth and developmental biology, and maintenance of homeostasis as a stable whole....
 or population
Population

File:Population density.pngIn biology, a population is the collection of inter-breeding organisms of a particular species; in sociology, a collection of human beings....
, measured by the number of gamete
Gamete

A gamete is a Cell that fuses with another gamete during fertilization in organisms that sexual reproduction. In species which produce two morphologically distinct types of gametes, and in which each individual produces only one type, a female is any individual which produces the larger type of gamete?called an ovum ?and a male produces th...
s (eggs), seed set or asexual propagules. Fecundity is under both genetic
Genetics

Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of heredity and Genetic variation in living organisms. The fact that living things inherit traits from their parents has been used since prehistoric times to improve crop plants and animals through selective breeding....
 and environmental control, and is the major measure of fitness
Fitness (biology)

Fitness is a central concept in evolution. It describes the capability of an individual of certain genotype to reproduce, and usually is equal to the proportion of the individual's genes in all the genes of the next generation....
. Fecundation is another term for fertilisation
Fertilisation

Fertilisation , is the fusion of gametes to produce a new organism. In animals, the process involves a sperm fusing with an ovum, which eventually leads to the development of an embryo....
. Superfecundity refers to an organism's ability to store another organism's sperm (after copulation) and fertilize its own eggs from that store after a period of time, essentially making it appear as though fertilization occurred without sperm (i.e. parthenogenesis
Parthenogenesis

Parthenogenesis is an asexual form of reproduction found in females where growth and development of embryos or seeds occurs without fertilization by a male....
).

Fecundity is important and well studied in the field of population ecology
Population ecology

Population ecology is a major sub-field of ecology that deals with the dynamics of species populations and how these populations interact with the natural environment....
. Fecundity can increase or decrease in a population according to current conditions and certain regulating factors
Regulating factors

In population ecology, a regulating factor is something that keeps a population at Punctuated equilibrium .An example of a regulating factor would be food supply....
. For instance, in times of hardship for a population such as a lack of food
Starvation

Starvation is a severe reduction in vitamin, nutrient, and energy intake, and is the most extreme form of malnutrition. In humans, prolonged starvation causes permanent organ damage and, eventually, death....
, juvenile and eventually adult fecundity has been shown to decrease.

Fecundity has also been shown to increase in ungulates with relation to warmer weather.

In the philosophy of science
Philosophy of science

The philosophy of science is concerned with the assumptions, foundations, and implications of science. The field is defined by an interest in one of a set of "traditional" problems or an interest in central or foundational concerns in science....
, fecundity refers to the ability of a scientific theory
Scientific theory

For a treatment of theories in general see TheoryIn the sciences generally, scientific theories are constructed from elementary theorems that consist in empirical data about observable phenomena....
 to open new lines of theoretical inquiry.

See also

  • Birth rate
    Birth rate

    Crude birth rate is the natality or childbirths per 1,000 people per year.It can be represented by number of childbirths in that year, and p is the current population....
  • Fecundism
    Fecundism

    Fecundism is the politics of willfully promoting high birth rate among a group for the sake of enlarging its numbers related to other groups and, consequently, its political influence....
  • Fertility
    Fertility

    Fertility is the natural capability of giving life. As a measure, "fertility rate" is the number of children born per couple, person or population....
  • Population ecology
    Population ecology

    Population ecology is a major sub-field of ecology that deals with the dynamics of species populations and how these populations interact with the natural environment....


External links


cs:Plodnost (biologie) es:Fecundidad gl:Fecundidade it:Fertilità simple:Fecundity