Stability of an intraguild predation system with mutual predation

• When both species’ efficiencies are large, the IGP leads to survival of the species.
• When one species’ efficiency is large but the other’s is small, an obligate species can survive through mutual predation with a facultative one.
• When both species’ efficiencies are small, the IGP leads to extinction of one/both species.
• Over-predation or under-predation will lead to extinction of one/both species, while intermediate predation is favorable under certain parameter ranges.
• Varying one parameter or population density can lead to transition between mutualism, parasitism and competition.

We examine intraguild predation (IGP), in which species both compete for resources or space and prey on each other. The IGP system is modeled here by a lattice gas model of the mean-field theory. First, we consider the IGP system of one species in which individuals of the same species cannibalize each other. The dynamical behavior of the model demonstrates a mechanism by which the intraspecific predation promotes persistence of the species. Then we consider the IGP system of two species with mutual predation. Global dynamics of the model exhibit basic properties of IGP: (i) When both species’ efficiencies in converting the consumptions into fitness are large, the outcome of their interaction is mutualistic in form and the IGP promotes persistence of both species. (ii) When one species’ efficiency is large but the other’s is small, the interaction outcomes become parasitic in nature, in which an obligate species can survive through the mutual predation with a facultative one. (iii) When both species’ efficiencies are small, the interaction outcomes are competitive in nature and the IGP leads to extinction of one of the species. A novel result of this work is that varying one parameter or population density of the species can lead to transition of interaction outcomes between mutualism, parasitism and competition. On the other hand, dynamics of the models demonstrate that over-predation or under-predation will result in extinction of one/both species, while intermediate predation is favorable under certain parameter ranges.