Heterogeneity, patchiness and correlation of resources

In this paper, I argue that many ecological ideas that are typically expressed in terms of ‘patches’ of habitat can be framed more generally in terms of spatial correlation of resource availability. This avoids practical difficulties in the definition of a ‘patch’ in a given study. The idea is illustrated by reference to some existing models of territoriality, and by revisiting a model for the resource dispersion hypothesis. As an example, I show how this perspective resolves one of the difficulties of interpretation in a study of spatial organization in urban foxes.