The workshop introduces students to mathematical modelling in ecology using predator-prey relationships. Through real-world examples like hares and lynx, students explore how populations grow, interact, and decline depending on food sources and predation.

The core focus is on:

  • The maths of population growth
  • The maths of population extinction
  • The equations for population dynamics
  • How maths can model natural systems
  • The importance of balance between species

The maths cannot not only recreate the observations but also be used to model if there is a change in the environment like the reintroduction of Wolves into Ireland.

image

(A) The number of hare pelts collected (in tens of thousands) over time. (B) The number of lynx pelts collected (in tens of thousands) over time, inferred from Hudson Bay Company data from 1895 to 1935

Materials

Slides

Predator Prey

Predator Prey Slides

Worksheet

Predator Prey Worksheet

References

Brady, R. M., & Butler, J. S. (2021). The Circle of Life: The Mathematics of Predator‑Prey Relationships. Frontiers for Young Minds, 9, 651131. [https://doi.org/10.3389/frym.2021.651131]