Singular perturbations of the Holling I predator-prey system with a focus (Q2184718)

This paper studies the occurrence of limit cycles in a predator-prey model of a generalized Gause type, with a logistic growth rate for the prey and a functional response of Holling type I with cutoff for the predator. The particular form of the functional response is justified by the predators capping their feeding rate when the prey density exceeds a certain value, as they find easy to capture and assimilate the prey. The authors prove the existence of exactly two nested limit cycles for certain parameter ranges via a geometric argument, an analysis of a bifurcation problem for which limit cycles are created after a perturbation of a system with a continuum of singularities and a study of the limiting behavior of the system at the boundary of the parameter ranges. The stability of the perturbed limit cycles is discussed by studying the integral of the perturbed divergence along the slow parts of the singular cycles. Several results regarding the non-existence of limit cycles under certain circumstances are also proved via the reduction of the system to the generalized Liénard form. Also, an overall conclusion is that the introduction of the cutoff can lead to a more complex behavior of the system. This means that when trying to determine the exact form of the functional response from experimental data, it is important to investigate the behavior of the system for large prey densities.