Dynamical consequences of predator interference in a tri-trophic model food chain

A model food chain involving a specialist and a generalist predator is proposed and studied. One of the salient features of this model food chain is that it combines both the schemes (Volterra and Leslie) of modeling predator–prey interaction in one system in such a way that the demerits of these individual formulations are suppressed and the resulting model system represents a common unit of real world food webs. The stability analysis of the proposed model is carried out. The Hopf bifurcation conditions of the positive equilibrium point are established. Our numerical computations show that chaotic dynamics is sensitive to changes in values of parameters measuring attributes of either interacting populations or their environments. Two dimensional parameter scans suggest that the model food chain displays short-term recurrent chaos. This can be regarded as a plausible explanation for why it has been so difficult to detect deterministic chaos in natural populations.     

VOLE POPULATION DYNAMICS UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF SPECIALIST AND GENERALIST PREDATION

Abstract To understand the impact of predation by different types of predators on the vole population dynamics, we formulate a three differential equation model describing the population dynamics of voles, the “specialist predator” and the “generalist predator.” First we perform a local stability study of the different steady states of the basic model and deduce that the predation rates of the “specialist” as well as the “generalist” predator are the main parameters controlling the existence/extinction criteria of the concerned populations. Next we analyze the model from a thermodynamic perspective and study the thermodynamic stability of the different equilibria. Finally using stochastic driving forces, we incorporate the exogenous factor of environmental forcing and investigate the stochastic stability of the system. We compare the stability criteria of the different steady states under deterministic, thermodynamic and stochastic situations. The analysis reveals that when the “specialist” and the “generalist” predator are modeled separately, the system exhibits rich dynamics and the predation rates of both types of predators play a major role in controlling vole oscillation and/or stability. These findings are also seen to resemble closely with the observed behavior of voles in the natural setting. Numerical simulations are carried out to illustrate analytical findings.     

The chaos and control of a food chain model supplying additional food to top-predator

The control and management of chaotic population is one of the main objectives for constructing mathematical model in ecology today. In this paper, we apply a technique of controlling chaotic predator–prey population dynamics by supplying additional food to top-predator. We formulate a three species predator–prey model supplying additional food to top-predator. Existence conditions and local stability criteria of equilibrium points are determined analytically. Persistence conditions for the system are derived. Global stability conditions of interior equilibrium point is calculated. Theoretical results are verified through numerical simulations. Phase diagram is presented for various quality and quantity of additional food. One parameter bifurcation analysis is done with respect to quality and quantity of additional food separately keeping one of them fixed. Using MATCONT package, we derive the bifurcation scenarios when both the parameters quality and quantity of additional food vary together. We predict the existence of Hopf point (H), limit point (LP) and branch point (BP) in the model for suitable supply of additional food. We have computed the regions of different dynamical behaviour in the quantity–quality parametric plane. From our study we conclude that chaotic population dynamics of predator prey system can be controlled to obtain regular population dynamics only by supplying additional food to top predator. This study is aimed to introduce a new non-chemical chaos control mechanism in a predator–prey system with the applications in fishery management and biological conservation of prey predator species.     

Study of a Tritrophic Food Chain Model with Non-differentiable Functional Response

We study a model of three interacting species in a food chain composed by a prey, an specific predator and a generalist predator. The capture of the prey by the specific predator is modelled as a modified Holling-type II non-differentiable functional response. The other predatory interactions are both modelled as Holling-type I. Moreover, our model follows a Leslie-Gower approach, in which the function that models the growth of each predator is of logistic type, and the corresponding carrying capacities depend on the sizes of their associated available preys. The resulting model has the form of a set of nonlinear ordinary differential equations which includes a non-differentiable term. By means of topological equivalences and suitable changes of parameters, we find that there exists an Allee threshold for the survival of the prey population in the food chain, given, effectively, as a critical level for the generalist predator. The dynamics of the model is studied with analytical and computational tools for bifurcation theory. We present two-parameter bifurcation diagrams that contain both local phenomena (Hopf, saddle-node transcritical, cusp, Bogdanov-Takens bifurcations) and global events (homoclinic and heteroclinic connections). In particular, we find that two types of heteroclinic cycles can be formed, both of them containing connections to the origin. One of these cycles is planar involving the absence of the specific predator. In turn, the other heteroclinic cycle is formed by connections in the full three-dimensional phase space.

     

Revisited Hastings and Powell model with omnivory and predator switching

The effect of omnivory in predator–prey system is debatable regarding its stabilizing or destabilizing characteristics. Earlier theoretical studies predict that omnivory is stabilizing or destabilizing depending on the condition of the system. The effect of omnivory in the food chain system is not yet properly understood. In the present paper, we study the effect of omnivory in a tri-trophic food chain system on the famous Hastings and Powell model. Omnivory enhances the chance of predator switching between prey and middle predator. The novelty of this paper is to study the effect of predator switching of the top predator which is omnivorous in nature. Our results suggest that in the absence of switching, an increase of omnivory stabilizes the system from chaotic dynamics, however, if we further increase the strength of omnivory, the system becomes unstable and middle predator goes to extinction. It is also observed that the predator switching enhance the stability and persistence of all populations.     

Bifurcation and Turing pattern formation in a diffusive ratio-dependent predator–prey model with predator harvesting

The ratio-dependent predator–prey model exhibits rich dynamics due to the singularity of the origin. Harvesting in a ratio-dependent predator–prey model is relatively an important research project from both ecological and mathematical points of view. In this paper, we study the temporal, spatial and spatiotemporal dynamics of a ratio-dependent predator–prey diffusive model where the predator population harvest at catch-per-unit-effort hypothesis. For the spatially homogeneous model, we derive conditions for determining the direction of Hopf bifurcation and the stability of the bifurcating periodic solution by the center manifold and the normal form theory. For the reaction–diffusion model, firstly it is shown that Turing (diffusion-driven) instability occurs, which induces spatial inhomogeneous patterns. Then it is demonstrated that the model exhibit Hopf bifurcation which produces temporal inhomogeneous patterns. Finally, the existence and non-existence of positive non-constant steady-state solutions are established. Moreover, numerical simulations are performed to visualize the complex dynamic behavior.     

Migratory effect of middle predator in a tri‐trophic food chain model

A tri‐trophic food chain model in a two‐patch environment is considered. Although tri‐trophic food chain model is well studied, the study considering migration of middle predator is lacking. To the best of our knowledge, the present investigation is the first study in this direction. Both prey and predator density‐dependent migrations are considered to observe the effects on stability and persistence of the system. We observe that migration of middle predator has the ability to control chaos in tri‐trophic food chain model. Our results indicate that the chance of predator extinction enhances for prey density‐dependent middle predator migration. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A discrete-time model with non-monotonic functional response and strong Allee effect in prey

In this paper, we investigate the impact of strong Allee effect on the stability of a discrete-time predator–prey model with a non-monotonic functional response. The dynamics of discrete-time predator–prey models with strong Allee effect is studied earlier. But, the mathematical investigations of predator–prey dynamics in discrete-time set up with Holling type-IV functional response and strong Allee effect in prey are lacking. The proposed model supports the coexistence of two steady states, and the mathematical features of the model are analyzed based on local stability and bifurcation theory. By considering the Allee parameter as the bifurcation parameter, we provide sufficient conditions for the flip and the Neimark–Sacker bifurcations. We observe that Allee parameter plays a significant role in the dynamics of the system.     

On the dynamical behavior of three species food web model

In this paper, a mathematical model consisting of two preys one predator with Beddington–DeAngelis functional response is proposed and analyzed. The local stability analysis of the system is carried out. The necessary and sufficient conditions for the persistence of three species food web model are obtained. For the biologically reasonable range of parameter values, the global dynamics of the system has been investigated numerically. Number of bifurcation diagrams has been obtained; Lyapunov exponents have been computed for different attractor sets. It is observed that the model has different types of attractors including chaos.     

The role of top predator interference on the dynamics of a food chain model

In this paper, the effects of top predator interference on the dynamics of a food chain model involving an intermediate and a top predator are considered. It is assumed that the interaction between the prey and intermediate predator follows the Volterra scheme, while that between the top predator and its favorite food depends on Beddington–DeAngelis type of functional response. The boundedness of the system, existence of an attracting set, local and global stability of non-negative equilibrium points are established. Number of the bifurcation and Lyapunov exponent bifurcation diagrams is established. It is observed that, the model has different types of attracting sets including chaos. Moreover, increasing the top predator interference stabilizes the system, while increasing the normalization of the residual reduction in the top predator population destabilizes the system.