Volume 119, Number 2, 132-138, DOI: 10.1007/s12064-000-0009-1

Self-organised criticality in a genetic model of species-species interaction

Tane S. Ray, Leo Moseley and Naeem Jan

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Abstract

Genetics incorporated into a two trophic level species-species interaction model allows the populations of species to evolve. The system enters a regime where the extinction of species follows an erratic pattern in time and appears chaotic to the eye. Quantitative measurements suggest that the dynamics of the model exhibits self organised criticality. Fourier Transform analysis of the time series and autocorrelation function for the population data, as well as the distribution of lineage sizes and longevity of lineages, all show power law behavior. The lineages are the analogue of avalanches in other models of self organised criticality

Key words  trophic level - biological extinction - Lotka-Volterra systems - fossil record - Fourier transform

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