Modeling the dynamics of inhomogeneous natural rotifer populations under toxicant exposure

Most population models assume that individuals within a given population are identical, that is, the fundamental role of variation is ignored. Here we develop a general approach to modeling heterogeneous populations with discrete evolutionary time step. The theory is applied to models of natural rotifer population dynamics. We show that under particular conditions the behavior of the inhomogeneous model possesses complex transition regimes, which depends both on the mean and the variance of the initial parameter distribution; the final state of the population depends on the least possible value from the domain of the parameter. The question of population persistence is discussed.