RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Computational capability of ecological dynamics JF bioRxiv FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory SP 2021.09.15.460556 DO 10.1101/2021.09.15.460556 A1 Masayuki Ushio A1 Kazufumi Watanabe A1 Yasuhiro Fukuda A1 Yuji Tokudome A1 Kohei Nakajima YR 2021 UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2021/09/17/2021.09.15.460556.abstract AB Ecological dynamics is driven by an ecological network consisting of complex interactions. Information processing capability of artificial networks has been exploited as a computational resource, yet whether an ecological network possesses a computational capability and how we can exploit it remain unclear. Here, we show that ecological dynamics can be exploited as a computational resource. We call this approach “Ecological Reservoir Computing” (ERC) and developed two types of ERC. In silico ERC reconstructs ecological dynamics from empirical time series and uses simulated system responses as reservoir states, which predicts near future of chaotic dynamics and emulates nonlinear dynamics. The real-time ERC uses population dynamics of a unicellular organism, Tetrahymena thermophila. Medium temperature is an input signal and changes in population abundance are reservoir states. Intriguingly, the real-time ERC has necessary conditions for reservoir computing and is able to make near future predictions of model and empirical time series.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.