Seagrass-epiphyte population dynamic modelling.

We explored three population dynamic models of intra- and inter-specific competition between seagrass and its epiphytes: (a) ln(Xt/Xt-1) represents the population growth rate of local seagrass density; (b) ln(Xt/Xt-1) describes the net colonization/extinction rate of available habitat by seagrass; and (c) ln(Yt/Yt-1) represents the population growth rate of epiphytes on seagrass leaves. In each case, we compared the relative weight of evidence (AICcWt) for local, metapopulation and ‘combined’ scale (average local density including unoccupied patches) seagrass abundance as drivers of population dynamics.