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The Manna Effect: A Model of Phytoplankton Patchiness in a Regenerative System
Author(s) -
Wangersky Peter J.,
Wangersky Charles P.
Publication year - 1980
Publication title -
internationale revue der gesamten hydrobiologie und hydrographie
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.524
H-Index - 52
eISSN - 1522-2632
pISSN - 0020-9309
DOI - 10.1002/iroh.19800650511
Subject(s) - biology , phytoplankton , ecology , model system , nutrient , environmental science , monte carlo method , biological system , mathematics , statistics
A Monte Carlo model for the growth of phytoplankton in a regenerative system has been constructed. This model assumes that nutrients are regenerated randomly in time and space at the scale which is important to the individual organisms. Under such a regime, organisms originally arrayed in a random fashion assume a patchy distribution within fifteen or twenty divisions, with some species becoming nonrandom in their distribution within five divisions. Other factors, physical or biological, may also induce or enhance patchiness, but normal regenerative processes in a nutrient‐limited system are sufficient in themselves to explain the phenomenon. Patchiness should be considered as the normal state for nonmotile organisms.