Unpacking the Allee effect: determining individual-level mechanisms that drive global population dynamics

Fadai, Nabil T.; Johnston, Stuart T.; Simpson, Matthew J.

Abstract

We present a solid theoretical foundation for interpreting the origin of Allee effects by providing the missing link in understanding how local individual-based mechanisms translate to global population dynamics. Allee effects were originally proposed to describe population dynamics that cannot be explained by exponential and logistic growth models. However, standard methods often calibrate Allee effect models to match observed global population dynamics without providing any mechanistic insight. By introducing a stochastic individual-based model, with proliferation, death and motility rates that depend on local density, we present a modelling framework that translates particular global Allee effects to specific individual-based mechanisms. Using data from ecology and cell biology, we unpack individual-level mechanisms implicit in an Allee effect model and provide simulation tools for others to repeat this analysis.

Citation

Fadai, N. T., Johnston, S. T., & Simpson, M. J. (2020). Unpacking the Allee effect: determining individual-level mechanisms that drive global population dynamics. Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences, 476(2241), Article 20200350. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspa.2020.0350

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Aug 14, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Sep 16, 2020
• Publication Date: 2020-09
• Deposit Date: Sep 28, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Oct 9, 2020
• Journal: Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences
• Print ISSN: 1364-5021
• Electronic ISSN: 1471-2946
• Publisher: The Royal Society
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 476
• Issue: 2241
• Article Number: 20200350
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rspa.2020.0350
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/4930801
• Publisher URL: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspa.2020.0350