General amplitude equations are derived for reaction-diffusion systems near
the soft onset of birhythmicity described by a supercritical pitchfork-Hop
f bifurcation. Using these equations and applying singular perturbation the
ory, we show that stable autonomous pacemakers represent a generic kind of
spatiotemporal patterns in such systems. This is verified by numerical simu
lations, which also show the existence of breathing and swinging pacemaker
solutions. The drift of self-organized pacemakers in media with spatial par
ameter gradients is analytically and numerically investigated.