Abstract
Two predictions of changing climate are the emergence of new diseases and the expansion of the ranges of existing parasites. Variation among individuals, especially in response to parasites, directly affects population dynamics and how populations respond to management. Immune function, therefore is a key individual-level trait that influences demographic characteristics and life-history traits because it directly affects the survival outcome of a parasitic challenge. Mounting an immune response is expensive in energy and resources and, thus, the principle of allocation predicts that trade-offs will occur with other energetically demanding tasks, such as survival or reproduction. Therefore, understanding immune function in wild animals is important for predicting how animal populations will respond to management, and we recommend that managers integrate data on immune function into larger studies of population dynamics and management of populations. In this review, we introduce how types of immune function are classified within traditional immunology and the emerging field of ecological immunology (ecoimmunology). We also review the resources available to wildlife managers for learning about techniques in ecoimmunology, and provide guidance for developing studies of immune function within larger projects on demography among populations.