SINKS, SOURCES, AND SPOTTED OWLS - A TERRITORIAL POPULATION-MODEL WITH CONTINUOUS MORTALITY AND DISCRETE BIRTH

A model is developed for the dynamics of a territorial population for which mortality and the search for suitable territories are treated as continuous processes and birth occurs as a discrete pulse once each y ear. It is shown that the trajectories converge either to a fixed annu al cycle or to extinction for both groups as long as the individual re productive success and survival rate for the territorial population ex ceeds that for those individuals not holding territories. Conditions t hat determine whether the population will persist are provided.