If I understand correctly, a Lindeman spine is just a series of flow networks, so I'd start with the "enaR" (tools for ecological network analysis) or maybe go as primitive as the "networks" (relational data) package. Either of these should allow you to design and implement flow networks. Maybe even try the "foodwebs" package.. but I have no experience with it so maybe someone else can chime in...

Just suggestions. Hope they help!

Package links:

http://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/enaR

http://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/network/network

http://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/foodweb

If I understand correctly, a Lindeman spine is just a series of flow networks, so I'd start with the "enaR" (tools for ecological network analysis) or maybe go as primitive as the "networks" (relational data) package. Either of these should allow you to design and implement flow networks. Maybe even try the "foodwebs" package.. but I have no experience with it so maybe someone else can chime in...

Just suggestions. Hope they help!

Package links:

http://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/enaR

http://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/network/network

http://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/foodweb

Thank you Andrew, I will look closely at the 3 packages. The Lindeman spine is a linear chain, with integer levels, making a summary of a trophic network. Primary producers and detritus are level I, hebivorous in levelII and omnivores are split between integer levels. This shows you the efficiency of the different levels. Those dominating the respiration or the exports. Usually, I use Netwrk, the fortran program developped by Bob Ulanowicz, for the calculation of the flow and make the graphic representation by hand.

Dear Nathalie! Stuart Borrett has translated NETWRK (which includes the calculation of the Lindeman Spine) into R. Please give him a shout. If he doesn't respond, let me know, and I will dig up the code for you. The best, Bob

All, unfortunately enaR does not yet have the Trophic Spine calculations in it. However, we hope to add it in the future.

We have added functions to the enaR package to calculate the Lindeman Spine.  These functions are currently in the beta branch of our package development, which you can access from github at https://github.com/SEELab/enaR/tree/beta.  enaTroAgg is the main function for this calculation, but enaCycle calculates the cycle basis following Ulanowicz's work as well.  The enaTroAgg function should replicate the results returned by Dr. Ulanowicz's Netwrk 4.2 program.  

The functions will be included in our next major enaR update to CRAN, but you can install the beta branch of the package in R from github using the devtools package if you want to get started using this feature now.  Please let me know if you need more information.   

https://github.com/SEELab/enaR

https://github.com/SEELab/enaR/tree/beta

Please see this ref:

enaR: Ecological Network Analysis with R Matthew K. Lau∗ David E. Hines† Pawandeep Singh‡ Stuart R. Borrett§

Best Regards