Elton (1927) realized that, intuitively at least, nature was complex and stable.
And that the last property contributed to the first. This idea was challenged
mathematically by Gardner and Ashby (1970) and May (1972), and in the years
following various models have attempted to reconcile these opposing views. Unlike
previous mathematical approaches that demonstrated that simple stable systems are
destabilized through added complexity, the approach presented herein began with a
model that was unstable. This perspective provided allows model complexity and at the
same time increased likelihood of mathematically stable. This novel observation
suggested that ecosystem complication might stabilize a community. Within these
models a system may be stable despite the coexistence of several competitors, in direct
opposition to the Competitive Exclusion Principle. The hypothesis that the principle
may not hold as an absolute generality beyond two competitors is proposed. This
paradox may be explained by (1) interactions between competitors, (2) a keystone
predator, or (3) a combination of the first two factors. / Graduation date: 1999
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ORGSU/oai:ir.library.oregonstate.edu:1957/33652 |
| Date | 04 September 1998 |
| Creators | Duran, Israel N. |
| Contributors | Rossignol, Philippe A. |
| Source Sets | Oregon State University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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