Complex dynamics and bifurcation analysis of host–parasitoid models with impulsive control strategy

In this paper, we propose and analyse two type host–parasitoid models with integrated pest management (IPM) interventions as impulsive control strategies. For fixed pulsed model, the threshold condition for the global stability of the host-eradication periodic solution is provided, and the effects of key parameters including the impulsive period, proportionate killing rate, instantaneous search rate, releasing constant, survival rate and the proportionate release rate on the threshold condition are discussed. Then latin hypercube sampling /partial rank correlation coefficients are used to carry out sensitivity analyses to determine the significance of each parameters. Further, bifurcation analyses are presented and the results show that coexistence of attractors existed for a wide range of parameters, and the switch-like transitions among these attractors indicate that varying dosages and frequencies of insecticide applications and numbers of parasitoid released are crucial for IPM strategy. For unfixed pulsed model, the results show that this model exists very complex dynamics and the host population can be controlled below ET, and it implies that the modelling methods are helpful for improving optimal strategies to design appropriate IPM.     

Dynamics of a host–parasitoid model with prolonged diapause for parasitoid

In this paper, a host–parasitoid model with prolonged diapause for parasitoid is proposed and analyzed. The asymptotic stability analysis of the system is performed. For a biologically reasonable range of parameter values, the global dynamics of the system have been studied numerically. In particular, the effect of prolonged diapause and parasitism on the system has been investigated. Many forms of complex dynamics are observed. The complexities include: (1) chaotic bands with periodic windows; (2) pitchfork and tangent bifurcations; (3) period-doubling and period-halving cascades; (4) intermittency; (5) supertransients; (6) non-unique dynamics, meaning that several attractors coexist; and (7) attractor crises. Furthermore, the complex dynamic behaviors of the model are confirmed by the largest Lyapunov exponents.     

Asymptotic behavior of reaction–advection–diffusion population models with Allee effect

In this work, a qualitative analysis is carried out for reaction–advection–diffusion (RAD) systems modeling the interactions between two species with Allee effect. In particular, we study different scenarios: mutualism, competition, and a predator–prey relationship in order to investigate the survival or extinction of both populations. Global existence and uniqueness of positive solutions of the proposed RAD problems are demonstrated. Equilibrium states and asymptotic behavior of solutions are obtained using the monotone method and the upper and lower solutions technique. Numerical simulations by a Crank–Nicolson monotone iterative method of the different asymptotic solution dynamics are shown to illustrate our theoretical results.     

Discrete-time analogues of predator–prey models with monotonic or nonmonotonic functional responses

Discrete-time analogues of predator–prey models with monotonic and nonmonotonic functional responses are introduced, respectively. The discrete-time analogues are considered to be numerical discretizations of the continuous-time models and we study their dynamical characteristics. It is shown that the discrete-time analogues preserve the periodicity of the continuous-time models with monotonic functional responses. Moreover, it is the first time that multiplicity of periodic solutions are studied when modeled with nonmonotonic functional responses. Unlike other types of functional responses, nonmonotone functional response declines at high prey densities. Thus the existing arguments for obtaining bounds of solutions to the operator equation $\mathit{Lx}=\lambda \mathit{Nx}$ are inapplicable to our case and some new arguments are employed for the first time.     

Discrete-time models for releases of sterile mosquitoes with Beverton–Holt-type of survivability

In this paper, we formulate discrete-time mathematical models for the interactive wild and sterile mosquitoes. Instead of the Ricker-type of nonlinearity for the survival functions, we assume the Beverton–Holt-type in these models. We consider three different strategies for the releases of sterile mosquitoes and investigate the model dynamics. Threshold values for the releases of sterile mosquitoes are derived for all of the models that determine whether the wild mosquitoes are wiped out or coexist with the sterile mosquitoes. Numerical examples are given to demonstrate the dynamics of the models.     

Dynamic complexity of a host–parasitoid ecological model with the Hassell growth function for the host

This paper investigates a discrete-time host–parasitoid ecological model with Hassell growth function for the host by qualitative analysis and numerical simulation. Local stability analysis of the system is carried out. Many forms of complex dynamics are observed, including chaotic bands with periodic windows, pitchfork and tangent bifurcations, attractor crises, intermittency, supertransients, and non-unique dynamics (meaning that several attractors coexist). The largest Lyapunov exponents are numerically computed to confirm further the complexity of these dynamic behaviors.     

Multiple attractors in a Leslie–Gower competition system with Allee effects

We investigate asymptotic dynamics of the classical Leslie–Gower competition model when both competing populations are subject to Allee effects. The system may possess four interior steady states. It is proved that for certain parameter regimes both competing populations may either go extinct, coexist or one population drives the other population to extinction depending on initial conditions.     

Allee effects in a Ricker-type predator–prey system

We study a discrete host–parasitoid system where the host population follows the classical Ricker functional form and is also subject to Allee effects. We determine basins of attraction of the local attractors of the single population model when the host intrinsic growth rate is not large. In this situation, existence and local stability of the interior steady states for the host–parasitoid interaction are completely analysed. If the host's intrinsic growth rate is large, then the interaction may support multiple interior steady states. Linear stability of these steady states is provided.     

Competitive exclusion and coexistence in a Leslie–Gower competition model with Allee effects

The classical competitive exclusion principle states that two populations competing for a limited resource cannot coexist, one of the populations will drive the other to extinction. We prove in this work that when one population is subject to Allee effects, then for certain parameter regimes both competing populations may either coexist or one population may drive the other to extinction depending on initial conditions.     

Stationary solutions of advective Lotka–Volterra models with a weak Allee effect and large diffusion

This paper is devoted to the Neumann problem of a stationary Lotka–Volterra model with diffusion and advection. In the model it is assumed that one population growth rate is described by weak Allee effect. We first obtain some sufficient conditions ensuring the existence of nonconstant solutions by using the Leray–Schauder degree theory. And then we study a limiting system (with nonlocal constraint) which stems from the original model as diffusion and advection of one of the species tend to infinity. Finally, we classify the global bifurcation structure of nonconstant solutions of the simplified 1D case.     

Discrete-time approximation of decoupled Forward–Backward SDE with jumps

We study a discrete-time approximation for solutions of systems of decoupled Forward–Backward Stochastic Differential Equations (FBSDEs) with jumps. Assuming that the coefficients are Lipschitz-continuous, we prove the convergence of the scheme when the number of time steps n$n$ goes to infinity. The rate of convergence is at least n^−1/2+ε$n^{-1/2+\epsilon }$, for any ε>0$\epsilon >0$. When the jump coefficient of the first variation process of the forward component satisfies a non-degeneracy condition which ensures its inversibility, we achieve the optimal convergence rate n^−1/2$n^{-1/2}$. The proof is based on a generalization of a remarkable result on the path-regularity of the solution of the backward equation derived by Zhang [J. Zhang, A numerical scheme for BSDEs, Annals of Applied Probability 14 (1) (2004) 459–488] in the no-jump case.     

Low dimensional homeochaos in coevolving host–parasitoid dimorphic populations: Extinction thresholds under local noise

A discrete time model describing the population dynamics of coevolution between host and parasitoid haploid populations with a dimorphic matching allele coupling is investigated under both determinism and stochastic population disturbances. The role of the properties of the attractors governing the survival of both populations is analyzed considering equal mutation rates and focusing on host and parasitoid growth rates involving chaos. The purely deterministic model reveals a wide range of ordered and chaotic Red Queen dynamics causing cyclic and aperiodic fluctuations of haplotypes within each species. A Ruelle–Takens–Newhouse route to chaos is identified by increasing both host and parasitoid growth rates. From the bifurcation diagram structure and from numerical stability analysis, two different types of chaotic sets are roughly differentiated according to their size in phase space and to their largest Lyapunov exponent: the Confined and Expanded attractors. Under the presence of local population noise, these two types of attractors have a crucial role in the survival of both coevolving populations. The chaotic confined attractors, which have a low largest positive Lyapunov exponent, are shown to involve a very low extinction probability under the influence of local population noise. On the contrary, the expanded chaotic sets (with a higher largest positive Lyapunov exponent) involve higher host and parasitoid extinction probabilities under the presence of noise. The asynchronies between haplotypes in the chaotic regime combined with low dimensional homeochaos tied to the confined attractors is suggested to reinforce the long-term persistence of these coevolving populations under the influence of stochastic disturbances. These ideas are also discussed in the framework of spatially-distributed host–parasitoid populations.     

Stabilization by memory effects: Kirchhoff plate versus Euler–Bernoulli plate

In this paper we study the asymptotic behavior of solutions of a dissipative coupled system where we have interactions between a Kirchhoff plate and an Euler–Bernoulli plate. The dissipative mechanism is given by memory terms that act either collaboratively (in both equations) or unilaterally (in only one equation). We show that the solutions of this system decay to zero sometimes exponentially and other times polynomially. We found explicit decay rates that depend on the fractional exponents of the memory in each of the following cases: when the memory only acts in the Kirchhoff equation, or only in the Euler–Bernoulli equation, or in both. We also show that all decay rates found are the best. The results obtained are surprising for the following facts: in the collaborative case, the best decay rates of the system are given by the worst decay rates of the uncoupled equations, and in the unilateral case, we conclude that the memory effects in the Euler–Bernoulli equation dissipate the system more slowly than memory effects in the Kirchhoff equation.     

Dynamics of predator–prey models with a strong Allee effect on the prey and predator-dependent trophic functions

The complex dynamics of a two-trophic chain are investigated. The chain is described by a general predator–prey system, in which the prey growth rate and the trophic interaction functions are defined only by some properties determining their shapes. To account for undercrowding phenomena, the prey growth function is assumed to model a strong Allee effect; to simulate the predator interference during the predation process, the trophic function is assumed predator-dependent. A stability analysis of the system is performed, using the predation efficiency and a measure of the predator interference as bifurcation parameters. The admissible scenarios are much richer than in the case of prey-dependent trophic functions, investigated in Buffoni et al. (2011). General conditions for the number of equilibria, for the existence and stability of extinction and coexistence equilibrium states are determined, and the bifurcations exhibited by the system are investigated. Numerical results illustrate the qualitative behaviours of the system, in particular the presence of limit cycles, of global bifurcations and of bistability situations.     

Stochastic modified Beverton–Holt model with Allee effect II: the Cushing–Henson conjecture

We consider a single-species stochastic modified Beverton–Holt model with Allee effects caused by predator saturation. We prove that, under some conditions on the parameters, there exists a Markov operator that is asymptotically stable. A stochastic version of the Cushing–Henson conjecture on attenuance and resonance is investigated.     

Stochastic predator–prey model with Allee effect on prey

We study a predator–prey model with the Allee effect on prey and whose dynamics is described by a system of stochastic differential equations assuming that environmental randomness is represented by noise terms affecting each population. More specifically, we consider a term that expresses the variability of the growth rate of both species due to external, unpredictable events. We assume that the intensities of these perturbations are proportional to the population size of each species. With this approach, we prove that the solutions of the system have sample pathwise uniqueness and bounded moments. Moreover, using an Euler–Maruyama-type numerical method we obtain approximated solutions of the system with different intensities for the random noise and parameters of the model. In the presence of a weak Allee effect, we show that long-term survival of both populations can occur. On the other hand, when a strong Allee effect is considered, we show that the random perturbations may induce the non-trivial attracting-type invariant objects to disappear, leading to the extinction of both species. Furthermore, we also find the Maximum Likelihood estimators for the parameters involved in the model.     

Dynamics of a generalized Ricker–Beverton–Holt competition model subject to Allee effects

In this article, we propose and study a generalized Ricker–Beverton–Holt competition model subject to Allee effects to obtain insights on how the interplay of Allee effects and contest competition affects the persistence and the extinction of two competing species. By using the theory of monotone dynamics and the properties of critical curves for non-invertible maps, our analysis show that our model has relatively simple dynamics, i.e. almost every trajectory converges to a locally asymptotically stable equilibrium if the intensity of intra-specific competition intensity exceeds that of inter-specific competition. This equilibrium dynamics is also possible when the intensity of intra-specific competition intensity is less than that of inter-specific competition but under conditions that the maximum intrinsic growth rate of one species is not too large. The coexistence of two competing species occurs only if the system has four interior equilibria. We provide an approximation to the basins of the boundary attractors (i.e. the extinction of one or both species) where our results suggests that contest species are more prone to extinction than scramble ones are at low densities. In addition, in comparison to the dynamics of two species scramble competition models subject to Allee effects, our study suggests that (i) Both contest and scramble competition models can have only three boundary attractors without the coexistence equilibria, or four attractors among which only one is the persistent attractor, whereas scramble competition models may have the extinction of both species as its only attractor under certain conditions, i.e. the essential extinction of two species due to strong Allee effects; (ii) Scramble competition models like Ricker type models can have much more complicated dynamical structure of interior attractors than contest ones like Beverton–Holt type models have; and (iii) Scramble competition models like Ricker type competition models may be more likely to promote the coexistence of two species at low and high densities under certain conditions: At low densities, weak Allee effects decrease the fitness of resident species so that the other species is able to invade at its low densities; While at high densities, scramble competition can bring the current high population density to a lower population density but is above the Allee threshold in the next season, which may rescue a species that has essential extinction caused by strong Allee effects. Our results may have potential to be useful for conservation biology: For example, if one endangered species is facing essential extinction due to strong Allee effects, then we may rescue this species by bringing another competing species subject to scramble competition and Allee effects under certain conditions.     

A stochastic modified Beverton–Holt model with the Allee effect

In this paper, we consider a discrete stochastic Beverton–Holt model with the Allee effect. We study the effects of demographic and environmental fluctuations on the dynamics of the model. Moreover, we investigate the potential function, the attainment time and quasi-stationary distributions of the system.     

Coexistence in seasonally varying predator–prey systems with Allee effect

A general seasonally-varying predator–prey model with Allee effect in the prey growth is investigated. The analysis is performed only on the basis of some properties determining the shape of the prey growth rate and the functional responses. General conditions for coexistence are determined, both in the case of weak and strong Allee effect. Finally, a modified Leslie–Gower predator–prey model with Allee effect is investigated. Numerical results illustrate the qualitative behaviors of the system, in particular the presence of periodic orbits.     

Source–sink impulsive bioeconomic models: Seasonal closures with fixed length

The dynamics of four source–sink models for an exploited resource under a constant fishing effort are here presented. Two models are described by ordinary differential equations; the other two are expressed by impulsive differential equations systems. A continuous time growth function for the resource is assumed for each of the four model. The impulsiveness in the harvest activity among fixed seasonal closures were considered in the models expressed by impulsive differential equations. We note that all our models show the possibility of getting a sustainable resource exploitation. The results obtained using both techniques are compared. These metapopulation models suggest the convenience of considering the source patches as marine reserves, in order to preserve the renewable resources.