The Combined Effects of Food and Temperature on the Life History Parameters of Brachionus patulusMULLER (Rotifera)

The combined effects of different levels of temperature (15°, 25° and 35°C) and food Chlorella (1,2 and 4 × 10 6 cells/ml) on the life history parameters (lifespan, life expectancy, net reproductive rate, intrinsic rate of increase, developmental time, and generation time) of a laboratory population of the rotifer Brachionus patulus were investigated. Both food and temperature, independently and in interaction, significantly influenced nearly all the parameters. The reproductive performance was a direct function of the food level, but the magnitude of food effect was temperature‐dependent. The observed temperature × food interaction effects are explained in terms of the energetics of resource apportionment between metabolism and reproduction.