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Predicting transient amplification in perturbed ecological systems
Author(s) -
TOWNLEY STUART,
CARSLAKE DAVID,
KELLIESMITH OWEN,
MCCARTHY DOMINIC,
HODGSON DAVID
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of applied ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.503
H-Index - 181
eISSN - 1365-2664
pISSN - 0021-8901
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2664.2007.01333.x
Subject(s) - transient (computer programming) , upper and lower bounds , extinction (optical mineralogy) , ecology , simple (philosophy) , population , transient response , term (time) , magnitude (astronomy) , control theory (sociology) , biology , computer science , physics , mathematics , astrophysics , engineering , control (management) , operating system , mathematical analysis , paleontology , philosophy , demography , epistemology , quantum mechanics , artificial intelligence , sociology , electrical engineering
Summary1 Ecological systems are prone to disturbances and perturbations. For stage‐structured populations, communities and ecosystems, measurements of system magnitude in the short term will depend on how biased the stage structure is following a disturbance. 2 We promote the use of the Kreiss bound, a lower bound predictor of transient system magnitude that links transient amplification to system perturbations. The Kreiss bound is a simple and powerful alternative to other indices of transient dynamics, in particular reactivity and the amplification envelope. 3 We apply the Kreiss bound to a discrete‐time model of an endangered species and a continuous‐time rainforest model. 4 We promote the analysis of transient amplification relative to both initial conditions and asymptotic dynamics. 5 Transient amplification of ecological systems, following exogenous disturbances, has been implicated in the success of invasive species, persistence of extinction debts and species coexistence. 6 Synthesis and applications . The Kreiss bound allows simple assessment of transient amplification in ecological systems and the response of potential amplification to changes in system parameters. Hence it is an important tool for comparative analyses of ecological systems and should provide powerful predictions of optimal population management strategies.