An evolutionary model for simple ecosystems
Abstract
In this review some simple models of asexual populations evolving on smooth landscapes are studied. The basic model is based on a cellular automaton, which is analyzed here in the spatial mean-field limit. Firstly, the evolution on a fixed fitness landscape is considered. The correspondence between the time evolution of the population and equilibrium properties of a statistical mechanics system is investigated, finding the limits for which this mapping holds. The mutational meltdown, Eigen's error threshold and Muller's ratchet phenomena are studied in the framework of a simplified model. Finally, the shape of a quasi-species and the condition of coexistence of multiple species in a static fitness landscape are analyzed. In the second part, these results are applied to the study of the coexistence of quasi-species in the presence of competition, obtaining the conditions for a robust speciation effect in asexual populations.
Cite
@article{arxiv.cond-mat/9906164,
title = {An evolutionary model for simple ecosystems},
author = {Franco Bagnoli and Michele Bezzi},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:cond-mat/9906164},
year = {2016}
}
Comments
36 pages, including 16 figures, to appear in Annual Review of Computational Physics, D. Stauffer (ed.), World Scientific, Singapore