Random evolutionarily stable strategies

This paper illustrates by an example that, when population and genetic dynamics are included in a model, the outcome in a competitive situation can be quite different from that deduced from the corresponding static model.

Abstract

Abstract The game-theoretic notion of competitive equilibrium has frequently been used to evaluate evolutionary trends. These discussions have centered mostly on the static situation, ignoring the constraints of Mendelian genetics. In this paper we illustrate by an example that, when population and genetic dynamics are included in a model, the outcome in a competitive situation can be quite different from that deduced from the corresponding static model. In particular, the nonlinearities due to density and frequency dependence can produce chaotic dynamics whose statistical properties may or may not fluctuate about the static “evolutionary stable strategy.”