Ecological oscillations induced by a shared predator and the "winner peaks first" rule

Abstract

We investigate the dynamics of an ecological system made up of one predator feeding on two different prey species. In a large range of parameter space, the system displays oscillating solutions. We show that, in the regime in which the two preys coexist, the better fit prey consistently peaks first. Further, we classify the possible oscillations of the network by a symbolic dynamics method. Our findings show that the symbolic orbits of an ecological system contain information about which of two preys is the better fit, and when one is bound to extinction. © 2011 American Physical Society.