Spatial Models of Higher-order Interactions

May 2022 - August 2022

Higher-order interactions, or those ecosystem interactions involving a third species modulating the interaction between two species, are increasingly understood to play a significant role in ecosystem structure. In this project, working with Theo Gibbs and Prof. Jonathan Levine, I investigated how higher-order interactions may impact spatial structure formation in ecosystems. Using analytical formulations from statistical mechanics and numerical computer simulations of stochastic dynamics, I worked on how spatial structure in ecosystems may mediate the effects of higher-order interactions on species coexistence.