Adaptive Dynamics of Ecological Populations

Understanding the dynamics, patterns, and evolutionary processes observed in natural eco-systems is key to ecological science and to strategic measures directed at the preservation of biological diversity. For many years, predictions of these phenomena have rested on a suit of simplifying assumptions. These prerequisites were believed to be met in many ecological systems and allowed for convenient mathematical analysis. Today, however, it is becoming increasingly evident that this traditional approach has led to negligence of a variety of central features shared by ecosystems in the real world. This concerns, among other issues, the importance of individual discreteness, spatial heterogeneity, and rapid adaptive change. Field studies as well as computer simulations have demonstrated convincingly that the negligence ingrained in the traditional view does not only result in serious quantitative problems of predicative accuracy but may even give rise to qualitative discrepancies between ecological models and the corresponding processes in nature. This binational research project seeks to bring together two leading groups of biomathe-maticians and theoretical biologists with demonstrated expertise in systematically overcoming such confines of traditional ecological theory. Already working at the forefront of adaptive dynamics research and of spatial ecological theory, the two research teams from Japan and Austria are ideally suited to synthesize recently achieved progress in their fields and to make a strong contribution to the development of an improved modeling framework for evolutionary ecology. Targeting a range of timely research problems in (a) spatial ecology and evolution, (b) multispecies dynamics, coevolution, and hierarchical selection, and in the study of (c) altruism and the evolution of cooperation, the proposed collaborative project is expected to result in scientific output of high international standard. To maximize the efficiency of scientific cooperation between the research teams, several orchestrated means of collaboration - work-shops, exchange visits, and the systematic involvement of young scientists - are foreseen