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Center for Nonlinear Studies |
Movement and assimilation in a resource landscape is a ubiquitous process. A large fraction of human and animal activities can be mapped on to the move/search and consume paradigm. We present a series of models to understand the effects of resource clustering on the stability and coexistence of populations of consumers. Coexistence of multiple species populations which consume a single resource, has been a mystery in population ecology. While the importance of spatial dynamics has been accepted, the effects of spatial distribution of resources and diffusivity of the consumers is not well-understood.
We first study simple foraging strategies that involve 'greed', 'frugality' and 'caching', and highlight the various trade-offs. Surprisingly, greed can be both helpful or hurtful depending on the spatial dimensionality. Similarly, it pays to be frugal, and also to cache resources under certain circumstances. Using these principles, we build models of a proliferating consumers, to understand the effects of life-history parameters on the stability of the population. We then show how the spatial clustering of resource influences stability of a population, and the coexistence of multiple species.
Host: Sara Y Del Valle