PARENT SESSION
Contributed Oral Session 116: Predator - Prey Ecology: Modeling
Thursday, August 11, 8:00 AM - 11:30 AM, Meeting Room 518 C, Level 5, Palais des congrès de Montréal
Spatial correlations and impact of predator-prey behavioral responses.
Bell, Adrian*,, Rader, Russell1, Peck, Steven1, Sih, Andrew2, 1 Department of Integrative Biology, Provo, UT, USA2 Department of Environmental Science and Policy, Davis, CA
ABSTRACT- Experimental studies have revealed the importance of behavior in the distribution and abundance of prey in predator systems. Contrasting prey behavioral types, such as aggressive versus less aggressive foragers, lead to spatial correlations between predators and prey which heavily impact the outcome of predator-prey systems. We have developed a spatially explicit simulation model tracking the populations and movement of both prey and predator through time and space. By manipulating predator and prey behavioral responses as well as landscape heterogeneity, we have found associations between spatial heterogeneity, behavior, predator and prey space use, and population dynamics.
Key words: predator-prey, simulation model, behavior, spatial dynamics