abmR

abmR implements agent-based modeling in R to simulate continental-scale animal movement using Ornstein-Uhlenbeck (OU) stochastic movement processes.

Key Features:

• Movement Functions: Two distinct movement functions grounded in the Ornstein-Uhlenbeck (OU) process for stochastic simulation of animal trajectories.
• Theoretical Foundation: Built on an OU-based stochastic framework to provide spatially explicit agent-based movement models.
• Illustrative Examples: Example simulations using two distinct populations that demonstrate package functionalities and simulation outputs.
• Environmental Variables (future): Planned ability to specify multiple environmental factors to modulate agent movement.
• Agent Interactions (future): Planned functionality to model interactions between agents for studying social dynamics and competition.
• Integration with Other Tools (future): Planned integration with other R packages focused on movement modeling.

Scientific Applications:

• Ecology: Simulate animal–environment interactions to inform conservation, habitat management, and movement-ecology studies.
• Disease Ecology: Provide a simulation framework applicable to disease ecology, including modeling potential disease spread among animal populations.
• Interactions Between Agents: Enable investigation of social behaviors and competition within and across species via simulated agent interactions.

Methodology:

Movement trajectories are generated using the Ornstein-Uhlenbeck (OU) stochastic process, with support for incorporating environmental variables into simulations.