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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 26, 2026

A Single-fly Assay for Foraging Behavior in Drosophila

A Single-fly Assay for Foraging Behavior in Drosophila

Published on: November 5, 2013

Info-gap robust-satisficing model of foraging behavior: do foragers optimize or satisfice?

Yohay Carmel¹, Yakov Ben-Haim

¹Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Technion, Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel. yohay@tx.technion.ac.il

The American Naturalist

|October 15, 2005

Summary

This study compares optimal foraging theory and robust satisficing models for animal behavior. Field data across many species suggests robust satisficing better explains foraging patterns than optimal foraging.

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Area of Science:

Ecology
Behavioral Ecology
Mathematical Biology

Background:

Animal foraging behavior is often explained by optimal-foraging theory, based on the marginal value theorem (MVT).
An alternative framework, robust satisficing, applies info-gap decision theory to foraging decisions.
Both models address similar ecological circumstances but yield different behavioral predictions.

Purpose of the Study:

To compare the predictive power of the optimal-foraging model (MVT) and the info-gap robust-satisficing model.
To test which model better explains empirical data from diverse animal species and foraging studies.

Main Methods:

Mathematical comparison of predictions derived from the marginal value theorem and info-gap robust-satisficing models.
Empirical validation using data from numerous field studies encompassing various species and taxonomic groups.

Main Results:

The two models generate distinct and sometimes contradictory predictions regarding foraging behavior.
A substantial majority of analyzed field studies provided evidence supporting the robust-satisficing model.
Conversely, the optimal-foraging model was rejected by the majority of the empirical data.

Conclusions:

The robust-satisficing model, utilizing info-gap decision theory, offers a more empirically supported explanation for animal foraging behavior than traditional optimal-foraging models.
These findings challenge the universal applicability of the marginal value theorem in predicting foraging strategies across diverse taxa.