title: Emergent features due to grid-cell biology: synchronisation in biophysical models.
abstract: Modelling studies of upper ocean phenomena, such as that of the spatial and temporal patchiness in plankton distributions, typically employ coupled biophysical models, with biology in each grid-cell represented by a plankton ecosystem model. It has not generally been considered what impact the choice of grid-cell ecosystem model, from the many developed in the literature, might have upon the results of such a study. We use the methods of synchronisation theory, which is concerned with ensembles of interacting oscillators, to address this question, considering the simplest possible case of a chain of identically represented interacting plankton grid-cells. It is shown that the ability of the system to exhibit stably homogeneous (fully synchronised) dynamics depends crucially upon the choice of biological model and number of grid-cells, with dynamics changing dramatically at a threshold strength of mixing between grid-cells. Consequently, for modelling studies of the ocean the resolution chosen, and therefore number of grid-cells used, could drastically alter the emergent features of the model. It is shown that chaotic ecosystem dynamics, in particular, should be used with care.
authors.affiliation: National Oceanography Centre Southampton, European Way, Southampton, UK. ejg@noc.soton.ac.uk
authors.forename: E J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Guirey
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Bees
authors.forename: A P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Srokosz
authors.forename: M J R
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Fasham
mesh_terms: D017753:Ecosystem; D008386:Marine Biology; D008954:Models, Biological; D009716:Numerical Analysis, Computer-Assisted; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D010933:Plankton / Q000254:growth & development*