Preliminary investigations into the predator prey dynamics of Indian dinosaurs by agent-based modelling simulations

Advancements in computer simulations have facilitated the understanding of paleobiology and paleoecology of extinct animals even in cases of limited paleontological evidence. Two dinosaur species, Rajasaurus narmadensis(Wilson), and Isisaurus colberti (Jain & Bandyopadhyay) dominated the late Maastrichtian stage of upper Cretaceous Lameta formation in India, whose paleobiology is poorly understood. A preliminary approach to understand the predator prey dynamics of these two dinosaur species is presented in this study using Agent Based Modelling Simulations (ABMs) program Netlogo by modelling the agents under three scenarios of varying predator prey ratio (PPR) and analyzing the results. The results revealed that the scenario with the high PPR provided maximal predation success, faster and higher kill numbers and overall predation efficiency, similar to extant predators/ facultative scavengers. Further research including additional key factors in the simulation models are necessary for a better understanding of the paleoecology of these dinosaurs.