Current Challenges for Mathematical Modelling of Cyclic Populations

The Banff International Research Station will host the "Current Challenges for Mathematical Modelling of Cyclic Populations" workshop from November 10th to November 15th, 2013.

Many populations around the globe have oscillations in population numbers with a multi-year interval between population peaks. Such cyclic populations can be found in animal, insect and bird populations in a wide variety of ecosystems. The causes of oscillations in population numbers are often poorly understood, though these cycles generate events of significant management and economic concern. For example, important cyclic events include periodic insect outbreaks, (e.g. spruce budworm, mountain pine beetle), population lows in economically valuable fish stocks (e.g. salmon), closure of grouse moors during troughs in population cycles, and cycles in the effectiveness of biocontrol agents. Our ability to manage, anticipate, and mitigate the effects of these cyclic populations rests heavily on our mathematical understanding of the processes that generate or drive the observed cyclicity.

The Banff International Research Station for Mathematical Innovation and Discovery (BIRS) is a collaborative Canada-US-Mexico venture that provides an environment for creative interaction as well as the exchange of ideas, knowledge, and methods within the Mathematical Sciences, with related disciplines and with industry. The research station is located at The Banff Centre in Alberta and is supported by Canada's Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), Alberta's Advanced Education and Technology, and Mexico's Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT).

BIRS Scientific Director, Nassif Ghoussoub
E-mail: birs-director[@]birs.ca
http://www.birs.ca/~nassif