Keywords
cellular automata, discrete models, plant population dynamics
Start Date
1-7-2004 12:00 AM
Abstract
We present a Cellular Automata based model for the simulation of the dynamics of plant populations.The evolution of a plant population in a given area mainly depends on the resources available on the territory(in turn influenced by other factors like sunlight, rain, temperature, and so on) and how different individuals(plants) compete for them. Traditional methods used in this field are continuous and based on differentialequations that model the global evolution of the system: unfortunately, most of the data needed to providereliable parameters for these models are usually scarce and difficult to obtain. The model we present is insteadthought in a bottom–up fashion, and is based on a two-dimensional Cellular Automaton, whose cells, arrangedon a square grid, represent portions of a given territory. Some resources are present on the area, divided amongthe cells. A tree is represented in the model by a set of parameters, defining its species, its size (that is, thesize of its parts such as limbs, trunk, and roots), the amount of resources it needs to survive, to grow, and/orreproduce itself (produce fruits). The model has been applied to the simulation of populations consistingof robiniae (black locust), oak, and pine trees, on the foothills of the italian alps, with encouraging resultsreproducing real experimentally observed population trends.
A Model Based on Cellular Automata for the Simulation of the Dynamics of Plant Populations
We present a Cellular Automata based model for the simulation of the dynamics of plant populations.The evolution of a plant population in a given area mainly depends on the resources available on the territory(in turn influenced by other factors like sunlight, rain, temperature, and so on) and how different individuals(plants) compete for them. Traditional methods used in this field are continuous and based on differentialequations that model the global evolution of the system: unfortunately, most of the data needed to providereliable parameters for these models are usually scarce and difficult to obtain. The model we present is insteadthought in a bottom–up fashion, and is based on a two-dimensional Cellular Automaton, whose cells, arrangedon a square grid, represent portions of a given territory. Some resources are present on the area, divided amongthe cells. A tree is represented in the model by a set of parameters, defining its species, its size (that is, thesize of its parts such as limbs, trunk, and roots), the amount of resources it needs to survive, to grow, and/orreproduce itself (produce fruits). The model has been applied to the simulation of populations consistingof robiniae (black locust), oak, and pine trees, on the foothills of the italian alps, with encouraging resultsreproducing real experimentally observed population trends.
