20.500.12556/RUL-183236 Age-specific patterns of reproductive success in wild female Eurasian lynx across Europe Reproductive lifespan and age-specific reproductive performance are key life-history traits, shaping individual fitness and population dynamics. Here, we examine age-specific variation in reproductive success in a wild large carnivore, the Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), using 38 years of longitudinal data from 173 known-age females across Europe and western Asia. Female lynx exhibited age-related reproductive patterns: (i) breeding probability increased with age before declining at older ages, (ii) litter size remained generally stable at two kittens, although it declined to one kitten in older mothers at northern latitudes, and (iii) offspring survival peaked at intermediate female ages, with variation across individuals, years and latitudes. These patterns likely reflect physiological maturation and increased experience (ages 2 to 8), followed by declines due to reproductive and maternal effect senescence in older females. Temporal and latitudinal variations suggest that environmental conditions shape reproductive patterns in Eurasian lynx, with senescence particularly pronounced in resource-scarce environments. Our findings enhance the understanding of age-related reproductive patterns in carnivores across environmental contexts, contributing to life-history theory and improving evidence-based management by accounting for age structure in population forecasting. Lynx lynx age-related reproduction offspring survival physiological development senescence life-history traits felids mammalian carnivores Lynx lynx evrazijski ris razmnoževanje starost preživetje mladičev staranje reproduktivni uspeh mačke zveri true false true Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik Članek v reviji 2026-06-09 11:11:34 2026-06-09 11:11:41 2026-06-10 04:10:59 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2026 0 0 10 str. issue 5, [article no.] 20250748 Vol. 22 1 May 2026 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 2026-05-27 599.742.734 1744-957X 10.1098/rsbl.2025.0748 280925955 RAZ_Liang_Yutong_2026.pdf RAZ_Liang_Yutong_2026.pdf 1 53EF37A6064101CFC7A96DCC418A10B8 959a9e76b67e084e755220bbf792a41e605d50a4dcddfba66761e8c01ac8d0af 46e46292-63e3-11f1-9b0d-0050569b8976 https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=235155 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/rsbl/article/22/5/20250748/481894/Age-specific-patterns-of-reproductive-success-in 1 394aaae9-63e3-11f1-9b0d-0050569b8976 https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=235154 Biotehniška fakulteta 0 0 0