Dresden 2017 – scientific programme

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DY: Fachverband Dynamik und Statistische Physik

DY 27: Posters - Statistical Physics Biological Systems

DY 27.1: Poster

Tuesday, March 21, 2017, 18:15–21:00, P3

Effects of migration on an evolutionary food-web model without explicit population dynamics — •David Jones, Tobias Rogge, and Barbara Drossel — Hochschulstraße 6, 62489 Darmstadt

Given the complexity of the structure of ecosystems and the interactions of the multitude of species therein, modeling of food-webs can prove to be a crucial tool in understanding the patterns that can be observed in nature. Here we present an evolutionary model to generate a network of complex, multi-trophic food-webs on a grid of habitats without a need for population dynamics. The individual species are defined by a small number of body mass based traits. These traits in turn define the links between the species within the food-web. After the initiation of a simple food-web on each node of the grid, mutations of existing species lead to the addition of species to a food-web, whereas migration allows a species to invade a neighboring food-web on the grid. Random extinction events are additionally implemented to prevent frozen configurations of the food-web network. After each mutation, migration or extinction event, the survival criterion is evaluated for the altered food-web structure. Species that do not fulfill the survival criterion within a food-web die out of the respective food-web. We explore the effect of migration on the network of food-webs and evaluate quantities that are of ecological interest, in particular species area laws.