As climate changes, species’ ability to spatially track suitable climate depends on their capacity to spread (or migrate), a function of their population growth and dispersal capacity. Migration lags can ameliorate the climate experienced at species’ expanding range edges as conditions become increasingly similar to those of the range core. When this boosts species’ growth rates, migrations accelerate.
As part of my Ph.D. work, I used simulations of a spreading population with an annual life history to explore the consequences of variation in demography across climatic gradients for the dynamics of climate induced range shifts.