DETERMINANTS OF LIFE-HISTORY EVOLUTION IN NEMATODES

What are the determinants of parasite life-history evolution? Does lif e-history evolution of parasitic species differ from their free-living relatives? How and why do host and parasite life-history traits covar y? Here, Serge Morand and Gabriele Sorci use recent comparative studie s to investigate life-history evolution in nematodes which present bot h parasitic and free-living groups. Application of life-history theory to nematodes suggests that the conventional wisdom concerning the hig h fecundity of parasitic species could simply be the result of the lar ger body size of the latter when compared with free-living forms. The authors also emphasize, with the use of examples, that in most cases p arasite life-history evolution depends on host features.