ForageAdapt Optimization Model for Studying Wildlife Feeding Strategies Under Resource Variability

Abstract

The strategy of feeding in animals can be regarded as one of the most important elements of their survival and reproduction in a variety of environments. The ForageAdapt model for optimization is intended to help evaluate the feeding strategies employed by animals in accordance with the temporal and spatial changes of resources. This research incorporates existing animal science literature on the issues of foraging ecology, dietary flexibility, and metabolic adaptability to formulate an advanced conceptual model. This model stresses the interaction between environmental variability, physiological limitations, and behavioural adaptation in terms of the formation of feeding behaviour in a variety of animal species. It has a range of applications, such as predicting feeding behaviour in domesticated livestock and wild ungulates, and optimizing foraging in omnivores.