The ecosystem modelling complex ‘Ecopath with Ecosim’ has been implemented extensively in the field of marine science; however, despite its widespread application, descriptions of its functionality remain arcane in the literature. This study conducts an evaluation of the software's prediction capacity using eight published Ecopath models. Response of six ecosystem-status indicators to four basic input variables to which imprecision had been added was investigated. Kempton's Q Index and total system throughput emerged as the most consistently responsive parameters. Moreover, input biomass was identified as a ‘high-leverage’ parameter, its influence on outputs being greater than that exerted by any other input variable. This study constitutes one of the first comprehensive investigations of the response of selected outputs to imprecise input values, and provides sufficient basis to warrant a sensitivity assessment of the software, as well as introduction of a dedicated tool to perform such a task within Ecopath with Ecosim.

生态系统建模综合体“Ecopath with Ecosim”已在海洋科学领域得到广泛应用；然而，尽管它得到了广泛的应用，但在文献中对其功能的描述仍然很神秘。本研究使用八个已发布的 Ecopath 模型对软件的预测能力进行评估。研究了六个生态系统状态指标对四个添加了不精确性的基本输入变量的响应。Kempton 的 Q 指数和总系统吞吐量成为最一致的响应参数。此外，输入生物量被确定为“高杠杆”参数，其对输出的影响大于任何其他输入变量的影响。