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Updated: May 31, 2026
06:44
Age-dependent Dynamics of Locomotion in Caenorhabditis elegans: A Lyapunov Exponent Analysis
Published on: September 23, 2025
Scaling mobility patterns and collective movements: deterministic walks in lattices
Xiao-Pu Han1, Tao Zhou, Bing-Hong Wang
1Department of Modern Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, People's Republic of China.
Summary
This study introduces a deterministic walk model explaining animal scaling mobility patterns. The model shows how resource levels near a critical point lead to ordered collective movement and flocking behaviors.
Area of Science:
- Physics
- Ecology
- Mathematical Biology
Background:
- Scaling mobility patterns are common in animal movement across various species.
- Understanding the underlying mechanisms for these patterns and emergent collective behaviors is a key challenge.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose a deterministic walk model that explains individual scaling mobility patterns.
- To investigate the emergence of ordered collective movements and flocking behaviors from individual behaviors.
Main Methods:
- Developed a deterministic walk model where agents perform least-action walks on a lattice landscape with prey.
- Analyzed the displacement distribution and emergent behaviors as a function of prey resource levels, focusing on the critical point.
Main Results:
- Scaling laws in displacement distribution emerge as prey resources approach a critical point.
- The model generates ordered collective movements with quasiperiodic synchronization of walker directions near the critical point.
Conclusions:
- The coevolution of least-action behavior and landscape dynamics can explain individual scaling mobility and collective animal flocking.
- This work bridges the understanding of individual movement patterns and large-scale coordinated behaviors in animal groups.
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