Published online by Cambridge University Press: 02 September 2010
The effect of rate of growth on the development of animals is examined in terms of it being related to variation from a pattern of development described by the allometric hypothesis. For this purpose, aliometry is expressed in terms of an extension to the shape/size concept originally proposed by Mosimann.
It is shown that such an effect of rate of growth would bias estimates of the development pattern, depending on the experimental design. However, within the framework of the method, a procedure for both removing the bias and actually estimating the effect of rate of growth on development is available.
A previously described test for one type of deviation from aliometry is shown to be incorrect by simulation.
An alternative test for the adequacy of the allometry hypothesis is developed, based on factor analysis of residual matrices from multivariate analysis of variance (the latter being used so that effects of treatment and concomitant variables can be taken into account).