A Valley Crossing strategy is willing and able to traverse some distance of "down" in wellbeing in exchange for a mid or long term payback of higher wellbeing. A Valley Crossing strategy is a good strategy when there is some hill distant from your current location that is on the other side of a valley but is high enough that your total wellbeing over the entire journey will be higher than your total wellbeing would be staying put. This is particularly true where the changing dynamics of the fitness landscape are such that your current territory is on the decline.
A classic example of Valley Crossing is migrating herds of animals who will move from one watering hole to another watering hole across otherwise arid conditions. Assuming scarcity, as the population increases so too will competition for those scarce resources. This reduces the individual wellbeing at the local watering hole. While leaving the water and journeying out into the desert is dangerous and potentially fraught with hazard, staying at the water is becoming increasingly hazardous as well. A Valley Crosser will be more adapted to enduring the hazards of the desert and will, therefore, be able to leave the watering hole sooner and at a higher state of actual wellbeing.
A classic example of Valley Crossing is migrating herds of animals who will move from one watering hole to another watering hole across otherwise arid conditions. Assuming scarcity, as the population increases so too will competition for those scarce resources. This reduces the individual wellbeing at the local watering hole. While leaving the water and journeying out into the desert is dangerous and potentially fraught with hazard, staying at the water is becoming increasingly hazardous as well. A Valley Crosser will be more adapted to enduring the hazards of the desert and will, therefore, be able to leave the watering hole sooner and at a higher state of actual wellbeing.
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