1A life table of a subtropical population ofMesocyclops edax(Copepoda: Cyclopoida) was constructed from a cohort of individuals reared in enclosures in a small, eutrophic lake.2The lake population was sampled concurrently to determine age structure,per capitabirth, death and growth rates, body size and clutch size.3Maturation times of enclosed males and females were 9.3 and 11.4 days, respectively. The population growth rate. r. was estimated to be 0.18 females day‐1for the enclosed population, but approximated zero on most dates in the lake population. Mortality was low in the enclosures which excluded predators and high in the field population exposed to planktivorous fish andChaoborus.4The means and variances of several fitness traits are related to the specific environment. The enclosure approach promises to be a useful tool in the study of zooplankton life history variatio
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