A diffusive predator-prey model with a protection zone

In this paper we study the effects of a protection zone Ω₀ for the prey on a diffusive predator-prey model with Holling type II response and no-flux boundary condition. We show the existence of a critical patch size described by the principal eigenvalue of the Laplacian operator over Ω₀ with homogeneous Dirichlet boundary conditions. If the protection zone is over the critical patch size, i.e., if is less than the prey growth rate, then the dynamics of the model is fundamentally changed from the usual predator-prey dynamics; in such a case, the prey population persists regardless of the growth rate of its predator, and if the predator is strong, then the two populations stabilize at a unique coexistence state. If the protection zone is below the critical patch size, then the dynamics of the model is qualitatively similar to the case without protection zone, but the chances of survival of the prey species increase with the size of the protection zone, as generally expected. Our mathematical approach is based on bifurcation theory, topological degree theory, the comparison principles for elliptic and parabolic equations, and various elliptic estimates.     

Turing patterns of a strongly coupled predator-prey system with diffusion effects

The main purpose of this work is to investigate the effects of cross-diffusion in a strongly coupled predator-prey system. By a linear stability analysis we find the conditions which allow a homogeneous steady state (stable for the kinetics) to become unstable through a Turing mechanism. In particular, it is shown that Turing instability of the reaction-diffusion system can disappear due to the presence of the cross-diffusion, which implies that the cross-diffusion induced stability can be regarded as the cross-stability of the corresponding reaction-diffusion system. Furthermore, we consider the existence and non-existence results concerning non-constant positive steady states (patterns) of the system. We demonstrate that cross-diffusion can create non-constant positive steady-state solutions. These results exhibit interesting and very different roles of the cross-diffusion in the formation and the disappearance of the Turing instability.     

A strongly coupled predator–prey system with non-monotonic functional response

The predator–prey system with non-monotonic functional response is an interesting field of theoretical study. In this paper we consider a strongly coupled partial differential equation model with a non-monotonic functional response—a Holling type-IV function in a bounded domain with no flux boundary condition. We prove a number of existence and non-existence results concerning non-constant steady states (patterns) of the underlying system. In particular, we demonstrate that cross-diffusion can create patterns when the corresponding model without cross-diffusion fails.     

Travelling waves of the diffusive Nicholson’s blowflies equation with strong generic delay kernel and non-local effect

In this paper, we consider travelling wave solutions for the diffusive Nicholson’s blowflies equation incorporating time delay and diffusion. Special attention is paid to the modelling of the time delay to incorporate associated non-local spatial terms which account for the drift of individuals to their present position from their possible positions at previous times. For the strong generic delay kernel, we show that travelling wave solutions exist provided that the delay is sufficiently small, using the geometric singular perturbation theory.     

Qualitative analysis of a predator-prey model with Holling type II functional response incorporating a prey refuge

We study a predator-prey model with Holling type II functional response incorporating a prey refuge under homogeneous Neumann boundary condition. We show the existence and non-existence of non-constant positive steady-state solutions depending on the constant m∈(0,1], which provides a condition for protecting (1−m)u of prey u from predation. Moreover, we investigate the asymptotic behavior of spacially inhomogeneous solutions and the local existence of periodic solutions.     

A diffusive predator-prey model in heterogeneous environment

In this paper, we demonstrate some special behavior of steady-state solutions to a predator-prey model due to the introduction of spatial heterogeneity. We show that positive steady-state solutions with certain prescribed spatial patterns can be obtained when the spatial environment is designed suitably. Moreover, we observe some essential differences of the behavior of our model from that of the classical Lotka-Volterra model that seem to arise only in the heterogeneous case.     

Asymptotic profiles of the positive steady state for an SIS epidemic reaction-diffusion model. Part I

To capture the impact of spatial heterogeneity of environment and movement of individuals on the persistence and extinction of a disease, Allen et al. in [L.J.S. Allen, B.M. Bolker, Y. Lou, A.L. Nevai, Asymptotic profiles of the steady states for an SIS epidemic reaction-diffusion model, Discrete Contin. Dyn. Syst. Ser. A 21 (1) (2008) 1-20] proposed a spatial SIS (susceptible-infected-susceptible) reaction-diffusion model, and studied the existence, uniqueness and particularly the asymptotic behavior of the endemic equilibrium as the diffusion rate of the susceptible individuals goes to zero in the case where a so-called low-risk subhabitat is created. In this work, we shall provide further understanding of the impacts of large and small diffusion rates of the susceptible and infected population on the persistence and extinction of the disease, which leads us to determine the asymptotic behaviors of the endemic equilibrium when the diffusion rate of either the susceptible or infected population approaches to infinity or zero in the remaining cases. Consequently, our results reveal that, in order to eliminate the infected population at least in low-risk area, it is necessary that one will have to create a low-risk subhabitat and reduce at least one of the diffusion rates to zero. In this case, our results also show that different strategies of controlling the diffusion rates of individuals may lead to very different spatial distributions of the population; moreover, once the spatial environment is modified to include a low-risk subhabitat, the optimal strategy of eradicating the epidemic disease is to restrict the diffusion rate of the susceptible individuals rather than that of the infected ones.     

Bistable wavefronts in a diffusive and competitive Lotka-Volterra type system with nonlocal delays

A diffusive Lotka-Volterra type model with nonlocal delays for two competitive species is considered. The existence of a traveling wavefront analogous to a bistable wavefront for a single species is proved by transforming the system with nonlocal delays to a four-dimensional system without delay. Furthermore, in order to prove the asymptotic stability (up to translation) of bistable wavefronts of the system, the existence, regularity and comparison theorem of solutions of the corresponding Cauchy problem are first established for the systems on R by appealing to the theory of abstract functional differential equations. The asymptotic stability (up to translation) of bistable wavefronts are then proved by spectral methods. In particular, we also prove that the spreading speed is unique by upper and lower solutions technique. From the point of view of ecology, our results indicate that the nonlocal delays appeared in the interaction terms are not sensitive to the invasion of species of spatial isolation.     

The diffusive logistic model with a free boundary in heterogeneous environment

In this paper, we study the population dynamics of an invasive species in heterogeneous environment which is modeled by a diffusive logistic equation with free boundary condition. To understand the effect of the dispersal rate D and the parameter μ (the ratio of the expansion speed of the free boundary and the population gradient at the expanding front) on the dynamics of this model, we divide the heterogeneous environment into two cases: strong heterogeneous environment and weak heterogeneous environment. By choosing D and μ as variable parameters, we derive sufficient conditions for species spreading (resp. vanishing) in the strong heterogeneous environment; while in the weak heterogeneous environment, we obtain sharp criteria for the spreading and vanishing. Moreover, when spreading happens, we give an estimate for the asymptotic spreading speed of the free boundary. These theoretical results may have important implications for prediction and prevention of biological invasions.     

A diffusive competition model with a protection zone

This paper is concerned with a two species diffusive competition model with a protection zone for the weak competitor. Our mathematical results imply that when the protection zone is above a certain critical patch size determined by the birth rate of the weak competitor, the weak species almost always survives, but it cannot survive when the protection zone is below the critical size and its competitor is strong enough. While this is the main feature of the model, the actual dynamical behavior of the reaction-diffusion system is more complicated. The key to reveal the main feature of the system lies in a detailed analysis of the attracting regions of its steady-state solutions. Our mathematical analysis shows that, compared with the predator-prey model discussed in [Yihong Du, Junping Shi, A diffusive predator-prey model with a protect zone, J. Differential Equations 226 (2006) 63-91], the protection zone has some essentially different effects on the fine dynamics of the competition model.     

Advection-mediated competition in general environments

We consider a reaction–diffusion–advection system of two competing species with one of the species dispersing by random diffusion as well as a biased movement upward along resource gradient, while the other species by random diffusion only. It has been shown that, under some non-degeneracy conditions on the environment function, the two species always coexist when the advection is strong. In this paper, we show that for general smooth environment function, in contrast to what is known, there can be competitive exclusion when the advection is strong, and, we give a sharp criterion for coexistence that includes all previously considered cases. Moreover, when the domain is one-dimensional, we derive in the strong advection limit a system of two equations defined on different domains. Uniqueness of steady states of this non-standard system is obtained when one of the diffusion rates is large.     

Non-existence of non-constant positive steady states of two Holling type-II predator-prey systems: Strong interaction case

We prove the non-existence of non-constant positive steady state solutions of two reaction-diffusion predator-prey models with Holling type-II functional response when the interaction between the predator and the prey is strong. The result implies that the global bifurcating branches of steady state solutions are bounded loops.     

Persistence of wavefronts in delayed nonlocal reaction-diffusion equations

We develop a perturbation argument based on existing results on asymptotic autonomous systems and the Fredholm alternative theory that yields the persistence of traveling wavefronts for reaction-diffusion equations with nonlocal and delayed nonlinearities, when the time lag is relatively small. This persistence result holds when the nonlinearity of the corresponding ordinary reaction-diffusion system is either monostable or bistable. We then illustrate this general result using five different models from population biology, epidemiology and bio-reactors.     

Positive solutions for a diffusive Bazykin model in spatially heterogeneous environment

In this paper, we investigate a diffusive Bazykin model in a spatially heterogeneous environment. We obtain some results on nonexistence and existence of positive solutions of the model. Moreover, the asymptotic behavior of positive solutions with respect to certain parameters is also studied.     

Strategy and stationary pattern in a three-species predator-prey model

In this paper, we study a strongly coupled system of partial differential equations which models the dynamics of a two-predator-one-prey ecosystem in which the prey exercises a defense switching mechanism and the predators collaboratively take advantage of the prey's strategy. We demonstrate the emergence of stationary patterns for this system, and show that it is due to the cross diffusion that arises naturally in the model. As far as the authors are aware, this is the first example of stationary patterns in a predator-prey system arising solely from the effect of cross diffusion.     

Attractors for nonlinear reaction-diffusion systems in unbounded domains via the method of short trajectories

We consider a nonlinear reaction-diffusion equation on the whole space Rd. We prove the well-posedness of the corresponding Cauchy problem in a general functional setting, namely, when the initial datum is uniformly locally bounded in L² only. Then we adapt the short trajectory method to establish the existence of the global attractor and, if d?3, we find an upper bound of its Kolmogorov's ε-entropy.     

Pullback permanence in a non-autonomous competitive Lotka-Volterra model

The goal of this work is to study in some detail the asymptotic behaviour of a non-autonomous Lotka-Volterra model, both in the conventional sense (as t→∞) and in the “pullback” sense (starting a fixed initial condition further and further back in time). The non-autonomous terms in our model are chosen such that one species will eventually die out, ruling out any conventional type of permanence. In contrast, we introduce the notion of “pullback permanence” and show that this property is enjoyed by our model. This is not just a mathematical artifice, but rather shows that if we come across an ecology that has been evolving for a very long time we still expect that both species are represented (and their numbers are bounded below), even if the final fate of one of them is less happy. The main tools in the paper are the theory of attractors for non-autonomous differential equations, the sub-supersolution method and the spectral theory for linear elliptic equations.     

Spreading speeds and traveling waves for periodic evolution systems

The theory of spreading speeds and traveling waves for monotone autonomous semiflows is extended to periodic semiflows in the monostable case. Then these abstract results are applied to a periodic system modeling man-environment-man epidemics, a periodic time-delayed and diffusive equation, and a periodic reaction-diffusion equation on a cylinder.     

Approximating the ideal free distribution via reaction-diffusion-advection equations

We consider reaction-diffusion-advection models for spatially distributed populations that have a tendency to disperse up the gradient of fitness, where fitness is defined as a logistic local population growth rate. We show that in temporally constant but spatially varying environments such populations have equilibrium distributions that can approximate those that would be predicted by a version of the ideal free distribution incorporating population dynamics. The modeling approach shows that a dispersal mechanism based on local information about the environment and population density can approximate the ideal free distribution. The analysis suggests that such a dispersal mechanism may sometimes be advantageous because it allows populations to approximately track resource availability. The models are quasilinear parabolic equations with nonlinear boundary conditions.     

On a system of reaction-diffusion equations arising from competition with internal storage in an unstirred chemostat

In this paper we study a system of reaction-diffusion equations arising from competition of two microbial populations for a single-limited nutrient with internal storage in an unstirred chemostat. The conservation principle is used to reduce the dimension of the system by eliminating the equation for the nutrient. The reduced system (limiting system) generates a strongly monotone dynamical system in its feasible domain under a partial order. We construct suitable upper, lower solutions to establish the existence of positive steady-state solutions. Given the parameters of the reduced system, we answer the basic questions as to which species survives and which does not in the spatial environment and determine the global behaviors. The primary conclusion is that the survival of species depends on species's intrinsic biological characteristics, the external environment forces and the principal eigenvalues of some scalar partial differential equations. We also lift the dynamics of the limiting system to the full system.