Filling Up The Tree: Considering The Self-Organization Of A Complex Behavior

Bradly Alicea, Michigan State University

This paper will lay of a model for better understanding the behavior of bird flocks roosting on the branches of a tree. Roosting is a complex behavior that involves multiple flocks of birds picking a single tree limb to rest on for the night. Roosting can be considered an iterative, time-dependent process that unfolds over a 45-minute interval roughly corresponding to twilight.

We will consider three complementary approaches to characterizing the spatial dynamics, interactions between elements, and movement dynamics of the subject population. The parking lot model, which has been used to model continuous random absorption on a one-dimensional lattice, will be used to characterize the dynamics of crowding in the tree structure over time. The other approach involves treating the interactions between birds as a coevolutionary game. Three typical behaviors exhibited during roosting will be used to determine payoffs and the probability of their occurrence during the roosting process. Finally, the relationships between complex graphs and roosting behaviors will be considered.