Relationship between reproductive history and fitness in Hallstatt (Austria)

Mireia Esparza, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Neus Martínez-Abadías, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Marta Muñoz Tudurí, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Torstein Sjovold, Stockholm Universitet
Rolando González-José, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
Clara E. Garcia-Moro, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Miguel Hernández

The aim of this work is to analyze the intensity of natural selection on women’s reproductive timing through the study of the association between reproductive histories and fitness measures. We collected demographic data from the Catholic parish of Hallstatt (Austria) corresponding to the period 1602 -1891 in order to do a family reconstitution to obtain women’s reproductive histories and fitness measures. Path analysis methodology was applied in order to study the association between some key reproductive traits (fertility, age at first birth, age at last birth, reproductive span and birth intervals) and fitness, which was measured both as individual λ and as lifetime reproductive success (LRS). Women’s birth cohorts were included in the analysis in order to adjust the models for temporal changes in fertility and mortality patterns along the demographic transition process.