Abstract
A tropical rain forest is ecologically more stable than the sub-arctic tundra. If the number of species present is chosen as a measure of the ‘complexity’ of the ecosystem, and the ability of the species present to persist in time is taken as a sign of ‘stability’ then the above examples are interpreted to mean that Complexity leads to Stability. Another example of this hypothesis comes from agricultural observations. In general, a field with several interplanted crops is more resistant to a pest outbreak than a field with just a single crop.
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References
May, R.M., Stability and Complexity in Model Ecosystems, Princeton University Press, Princeton, N.J., 1973.
Maynard Smith, J., Models in Ecology, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1974.
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© 1979 Education Development Center, Inc.
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Frauenthal, J.C. (1979). Complexity vs. Stability. In: Introduction to Population Modeling. The Umap Expository Monograph Series. Birkhäuser Boston. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-7322-3_11
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-7322-3_11
Publisher Name: Birkhäuser Boston
Print ISBN: 978-0-8176-3015-7
Online ISBN: 978-1-4684-7322-3
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