Reproductive value, sensitivity, and nonlinearity: Population-management heuristics derived from classical demography

In classical demographic theory, reproductive value and stable age distribution are proportional to the sensitivities of the asymptotic population size to changes in mortality and maternity, respectively. In this note we point out that analogous relationships hold if the maternity function is allowed to depend on the population density. The relevant formulae can essentially be obtained by replacing the growth rate (“Lotka’s r†) with zero. These facts may be used to derive heuristics for population management (pest control).