rescomp: An R package for defining, simulating and visualizing ODE models of consumer-resource interactions

Abstract

O_LIMechanistic models of resource competition underpin numerous foundational concepts and theories in ecology, and continue to be employed widely to address diverse research questions. Nevertheless, current software tools present a comparatively steep barrier to entry. C_LIO_LII introduce the R package rescomp to support the specification, simulation and visualisaton of a broad spectrum of consumer-resource interactions. rescomp is compatible with diverse model specifications, including an unlimited number of consumers and resources, different consumer functional responses (type I, II and III), different resource types (essential or substitutable) and supply dynamics (chemostats, logistic and/or pulsed), delayed consumer introductions, time dependent growth and consumption parameters, and instantaneous changes to consumer and/or resource densities. C_LIO_LISeveral examples on implementing rescomp are provided. In addition, a wide variety of additional examples can be found in the package vignettes, including using rescomp to reproduce the results of several well known studies from the literature. C_LIO_LIrescomp provides users with an accessible tool to reproduce classic models in ecology, to specify models resembling a wide range of experimental designs, and to explore diverse novel model formulations. C_LI