A model of evolutionary appearance of dissipative structure in ecosystems (Q1063553)

The authors study a three-dimensional system of differential equations representing two isolated subpopulations \(U_ 1\) and \(U_ 2\) of the same species with some transfer of individuals between them by spatial diffusion, which are preyed on by a mobile predator species that ranges over both locations. The equations use standard Lotka-Volterra dynamics and linear diffusion, except that at low prey densities \(dU_ i/dt\) is proportional to \(U^ 2_ i\) instead of \(U_ i\). They find eight different regions of parameter space that correspond to eight different qualitative behaviors of the system. Five of these contain stable equilibria or limit cycles where \(U_ 1\neq U_ 2\), which the authors label dissipative structure. They then argue that evolution will increase the survival rate of the predator which can shift the system from a homogeneous \((U_ 1=U_ 2)\) stable equilibrium to a homogeneous limit cycle or to one of the dissipative structures \((U_ 1\neq U_ 2)\). This last point is made more explicit by analyzing models that contain two strains of predators and showing that as the strain with lower survivability dies out, stable oscillations or dissipative structures appear.