Perspectives on the intrinsic rate of population growth Methods in Ecology and Evolution

The intrinsic rate of population increase (rmax) is a fundamental metric in ecology and evolution of immediate practical application in conservation and wildlife management. I examine the interpretation of rmax by revisiting the theory behind the density-independent and density-dependent paradigms. The criticism that density-independent approaches underestimate rmax per se, often expressed in the field of fisheries, is shown to be theoretically unfounded. The difficulty in estimating rmax is due to lack of knowledge on the depletion level of the population rather than theory.