Meaning of subordinate trait | Babel Free

Definitions

A trait, at a lower level of biological organization, that acts together with other such traits to affect or determine characteristics at a higher level of biological organization.

Examples

“Although S lines had higher VO_(2 max) than C, subordinate traits showed no statistical differences when the presence of the mini-muscle phenotype was controlled.”

“A negative relationship may exist between burst speed and endurance because they are affected by many of the same subordinate traits, such as muscle fibre type composition (Webb 1984, Weihs 1989, Garland & Losos 1994, Vanhooydonck et al. 2001, Bonine et al. 2005).”

“Since complex life-history traits are composed of many subordinate traits, the response to selection, which acts most strongly on those phenotypic aspects that are most strongly correlated with fitness, comprises associated changes in both mean values and plasticity of various aspects of morphology, physiology, and biochemical pathways [4-6].”

CEFR level