Consider the equation

where are linear positive continuous operators and f : Cloc(ℝ;ℝ) → Lloc(ℝ;ℝ) is a continuous operator satisfying the local Carathéodory conditions. Efficient conditions guaranteeing the existence of a global solution, which is bounded and non-negative in the neighbourhood of –∞, to the equation considered are established provided that ℓ0, ℓ1 and f are Volterra-type operators. The existence of a solution that is positive on the whole real line is discussed as well. Furthermore, the asymptotic properties of such solutions are studied in the neighbourhood of –∞. The results are applied to certain models appearing in the natural sciences.

A correlated random walk in the plane is studied for which the direction of a step depends on the direction of the previous step. Both step direction and step length are continuous random variables. Such a random walk has been used to model the vegetative dispersal of certain plant populations. The analysis provides general conclusions about dependencies on parameters, an efficient scheme for generating numerical results, and testable predictions for plant populations.