Towards detailed and interpretable hybrid modeling of continental-scale bird migration

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Main Authors: Lippert, Fiona, Kranstauber, Bart, Forré, Patrick, van Loon, E. Emiel
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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author Lippert, Fiona
Kranstauber, Bart
Forré, Patrick
van Loon, E. Emiel
author_facet Lippert, Fiona
Kranstauber, Bart
Forré, Patrick
van Loon, E. Emiel
contents Hybrid modeling aims to augment traditional theory-driven models with machine learning components that learn unknown parameters, sub-models or correction terms from data. In this work, we build on FluxRGNN, a recently developed hybrid model of continental-scale bird migration, which combines a movement model inspired by fluid dynamics with recurrent neural networks that capture the complex decision-making processes of birds. While FluxRGNN has been shown to successfully predict key migration patterns, its spatial resolution is constrained by the typically sparse observations obtained from weather radars. Additionally, its trainable components lack explicit incentives to adequately predict take-off and landing events. Both aspects limit our ability to interpret model results ecologically. To address this, we propose two major modifications that allow for more detailed predictions on any desired tessellation while providing control over the interpretability of model components. In experiments on the U.S. weather radar network, the enhanced model effectively leverages the underlying movement model, resulting in strong extrapolation capabilities to unobserved locations.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2407_10259
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Towards detailed and interpretable hybrid modeling of continental-scale bird migration
Lippert, Fiona
Kranstauber, Bart
Forré, Patrick
van Loon, E. Emiel
Machine Learning
Hybrid modeling aims to augment traditional theory-driven models with machine learning components that learn unknown parameters, sub-models or correction terms from data. In this work, we build on FluxRGNN, a recently developed hybrid model of continental-scale bird migration, which combines a movement model inspired by fluid dynamics with recurrent neural networks that capture the complex decision-making processes of birds. While FluxRGNN has been shown to successfully predict key migration patterns, its spatial resolution is constrained by the typically sparse observations obtained from weather radars. Additionally, its trainable components lack explicit incentives to adequately predict take-off and landing events. Both aspects limit our ability to interpret model results ecologically. To address this, we propose two major modifications that allow for more detailed predictions on any desired tessellation while providing control over the interpretability of model components. In experiments on the U.S. weather radar network, the enhanced model effectively leverages the underlying movement model, resulting in strong extrapolation capabilities to unobserved locations.
title Towards detailed and interpretable hybrid modeling of continental-scale bird migration
topic Machine Learning
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2407.10259