The State of the Art of Population Projection Models: From the Leslie Matrix to Evolutionary Demography

Abstract

Population projection models have received much attention in ecology and made important theoretical advances in the last 50 years. They represent vital tools for improving conservation strategies and management actions. Here we attempt to join some of theoretical advances made in the field of population projection modelling, briefly revise the history and present some applications derived from population matrix models in ecological and evolutionary studies.

Long-term empirical studies of small mammals: the contribution of Dr. Rui Cerqueira to population biology

“…Esta condição permitiu, por exemplo, comparar o desempenho de diferentes métodos de estimativas de parâmetros populacionais, comparando abordagens (probabilística ou determinista), localidades de características diferentes, desenhos amostrais variados e espécies diferentes. No mesmo contexto, avançando cada vez mais em termos de sofisticação das análises empregadas, o conhecimento teórico avançou e as teorias ecológico--evolutivas puderam ser cada vez mais compreendidas e abordadas não apenas empiricamente (Kajin et al 2012. Além disso, outras abordagens de populações foram realizadas dentro deste projeto, sob a coordenação do Prof. M.V.…”

Mating Strategies of Invasive Versus Indigenous Crayfish: Multiple Paternity as a Driver for Invasion Success?

“…In a successful management plan for control or removal of invasive species, the rate of removal must exceed the growth of the population (Bomford and O'Brien, 1995). Therefore, the use of models to estimate population trends is essential (Kajin et al 2012). The predictive value of those demographic models can be enhanced by incorporating information on the mating system (Wildermuth et al 2013).…”

Epidemic spreading by indirect transmission in a compartmental farm

“…These compartments are not independent, they have interconnections among them which depend on the type of problem studied. For example, in population dynamics, it is common to organize individuals by age range classes or cubicles with transfers between the compartments when they reach the age corresponding to the next compartment, [1,2,3,4]. Moreover, compartmental models are also used when modeling virus transmission between computers connected to each other [5] and in a wide range of processes involving networks.…”