PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] -- Throughout nature, moms engage in a trade-off: Churn out a bevy of offspring and hope for the best, or have fewer kids but invest more in their survival.

Jaymi Heimbuch is a writer and photographer specializing in wildlife conservation, technology, and food. She is the author of "The Ethiopian Wolf: Hope at the Edge of Extinction." Let's face it, some ...