Population dynamics is a topic in ecology and evolutionary biology that investigates the temporal and spatial variation in population size, structure, and composition, and the processes that drive these changes. It focuses on birth, death, immigration, and emigration rates and their dependence on intrinsic factors (e.g., life-history traits, density dependence, genetic structure) and extrinsic factors (e.g., climate, resources, species interactions). Quantitative population dynamics research employs mathematical and statistical models—such as exponential, logistic, and age-structured models, matrix population models, and stochastic simulations—to analyze stability, persistence, extinction risk, and responses to environmental perturbations or management interventions.
Since the 1970s, the number of insects at Canada's Long Point Bird Observatory has dropped by more than 60%, according to a new study led by the University of Michigan. Because of this, today's birds are smaller and facing ...
Plants & Animals
16 hours ago
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The carrying capacity of the Baltic Sea could withstand a seal population twice its current size, but hunting quotas and Baltic herring mean weight greatly affect the future of the seals. A recent study provides a new estimate ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 20, 2026
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The cause of future food shortages may not be a lack of farmland, but a shortage of agricultural workers. Amid low birth rates and rural decline, a joint international research team from KAIST has developed a new data-driven ...
Agriculture
Jun 18, 2026
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There are encouraging signs for the endangered Maugean skate, with a new monitoring report finding that a new cohort of skates born in Macquarie Harbor has reached adulthood.
Ecology
Jun 10, 2026
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The time-development of species communities cannot be understood solely through ecological interactions or environmental factors, as evolution can also alter community dynamics. This observation helps to understand, among ...
Evolution
Jun 9, 2026
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10
A new study published in the Journal of Raptor Research, titled "Factors Influencing Nestling Sex Ratios of Suburban and Rural Red-Shouldered Hawks, 2004–2016," finds that hawk parents prioritize producing female offspring ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 2, 2026
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Scientists have reported it for decades: overpopulation can impair reproduction. Crowded chickens lay fewer eggs. Crowded mice have smaller broods. In humans, several studies have associated increased population density with ...
Evolution
May 21, 2026
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For decades, environmental debates have been framed around a stark trade-off: economic growth lifts people out of poverty but comes at the expense of forests, wildlife, and climate stability. More people and richer diets ...
Environment
May 20, 2026
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9
The vulnerability of a shark population to losing even small numbers to fishing has been highlighted by researchers from the University of Chester and partners in the Philippines using a remote stereo camera system. The team ...
Plants & Animals
May 20, 2026
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11
How does an ecosystem distribute its energy across body sizes? A new study suggests the answer depends on where you are—and how much humans have altered the landscape. Analyzing communities of birds and mammals worldwide, ...
Plants & Animals
May 14, 2026
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