NUMEV MIPS Seminar “Modeling population dynamics and species distribution: challenges at the interface of physics and ecology”

Predicting biodiversity dynamics in a context of environmental change is a major challenge for science and society. In particular, modeling the spatial distribution of populations and studying the impact of interspecific interactions on biodiversity patterns have long been addressed by ecologists and physicists. Various modeling methods, including differential equation models, stochastic modeling approaches, and cellular automata, have been considered in both disciplines, but conceptual and practical obstacles remain to a better understanding of biodiversity dynamics.

I will outline the ongoing dialogue between researchers in ecology and physics in the context of two types of ecological models, namely metapopulation and metacommunity approaches. The former studies the probability of occurrence of species populations across a set of potential habitat units, constituting a spatial network on which colonization and extinction events occur. The latter examines whether and how many species can coexist in habitat units, depending on the nature and architecture of their interactions.

I will conclude with a few specific and concrete challenges for which it will be essential to continue and deepen scientific interaction between physics and ecology.