Patterns in spatial simulations—are they real?

We discuss a class of spatial exploiter–victim models that exhibit pattern formation when exploiters disperse farther than their victims on average. The patterns are not Turing patterns; they are akin to patterns seen in models for neurological activities where spatial differences in excitation and inhibition can yield spatially inhomogeneous patterns. The patterns in our study may be common in ecological simulation studies where often dispersal kernels are chosen that appear to be particularly prone to exhibiting such patterns. Since these patterns are very sensitive to the choice of dispersal kernels, our study points to a potential pitfall in inferring processes from patterns in ecological studies that are based on computer simulations.