Random Search Strategies

Abstract

A search is defined as the action to look into or over carefully or thoroughly in an effort to find or discover something. Searching is a universal behaviour of a broad range of organisms, from bacteria to whales. In a foraging process, the search is only one component among others [1, 2]. Hence, search behaviour should be clearly distinguished from foraging behaviour eventhough in the scientific literature these terms are sometimes mixed. For example, the time spent searching compared to other components of a foraging process such as pursuing (chasing down) or handling (opening, subduing, swallowing) a prey varies among animals [2, 20].