Computer Simulations to Study Sympatric Speciation Processes

We perform simulations based on the Penna model for biological ageing, now with the purpose of studying sympatric speciation, that is, the division of a single species into two or more populations, reproductively isolated, but without any physical barrier separating them. For that we introduce a new kind of competition among the individuals, using a modified Verhulst factor. The new competition depends on some specific phenotypic characteristic of each individual, which is represented by a pair of bitstrings. These strings are read in parallel and have no age structure. In this way, each individual genome consists of two parts. The first one has an age-structure and is related to the appearance of inherited diseases; the second part is not structured and takes into account the competition for the available resources. We also introduce sexual selection into the model, making use of another non-structured and independent pair of bitstrings. In this thesis we present three different models; two of them use, besides the competition, a sudden change in the ecology to obtain speciation. They were motivated by the speciation process observed in the Darwin finches, a family of birds that inhabits the Galapagos Islands, and also by that observed in the cichlids, a family of fish that lives in the Nicaragua Lakes and in the Vitoria Lake, in Africa. The third model does not use any ecological change: sympatric speciation is obtained depending only on the strength of competition among individuals with similar phenotypic characteristics.
Comment: Doctoral Thesis defended on 28th March, 2005 at the "Universidade Federal Fluminense" Federal University in Niteroi, Brazil. Version in Portuguese