Chaos in perturbed lotka-volterra systems

Abstract

Lotka-Voltena systems have been used extensively in modelling population dynamics. In this paper, it is shown that chaotic behaviour in the sense of Smale can exist in timeperiodically perturbed systems of Lotka-Volterra equations. First, a slowly varying threedimensional perturbed Lotka-Volterra system is considered and the corresponding unperturbed system is shown to possess a heteroclinic cycle. By using Melnikov's method, sufficient conditions are obtained for the perturbed system to have a transverse heteroclinic cycle and hence to possess chaotic behaviour in the sense of Smale. Then a special case involving a reduction to a two-dimensional Lotka-Volterra system is examined, leading finally to an application with a model for the self-organisation of macromolecules. © Australian Mathematical Society 2001,.