The development of a spatio-temporal model for water hyacinth biological control strategies
Date
2016
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Georgia
Abstract
A reaction-diffusion model for a temporally variable and spatially heterogeneous environment is developed to mathematically describe the spatial dynamics of water hyacinth and the interacting populations of the various life stages of the Neochetina eichhorniae weevil as a biological control agent on a bounded two-dimensional spatial domain. Difficulties encountered during the implementation of the model in MATLAB are discussed, including the implementation of time delays and spatial averaging. Conceptual validation tests indicate that the model may succeed in describing the spatio-temporal dynamics of the water hyacinth and weevil interaction. A modelling framework is thereby provided to evaluate the effectiveness of different biological control release strategies, providing guidance towards the optimal magnitude, timing, frequency and distribution of agent releases. Numerical results confirm the hypothesis that the seasonal timing of releases have a significant influence on the success of the control achieved. However, in order to ascertain the degree to which the model output realistically represent the real life water hyacinth and weevil interaction, predictive validation tests are proposed for further research.
Description
CITATION: Van Schalkwyk, H., Potgieter, L. & Hui, C. 2017. The development of a spatio-temporal model for water hyacinth biological control strategies. Mathematical and Computational Forestry and Natural-Resource Sciences, 9(1):30-42.
The original publication is available at http://mcfns.com
Publication of this article was funded by the Stellenbosch University Open Access Fund.
The original publication is available at http://mcfns.com
Publication of this article was funded by the Stellenbosch University Open Access Fund.
Keywords
Water hyacinth -- Biological control -- Mathematical models, Space and time -- Mathematical models, Reaction-diffusion equasions, Eichornia, Water hyasinth -- Seasonal variations
Citation
Van Schalkwyk, H., Potgieter, L. & Hui, C. 2017. The development of a spatio-temporal model for water hyacinth biological control strategies. Mathematical and Computational Forestry and Natural-Resource Sciences, 9(1):30-42