Bifurcation, chaos and pattern formation in a space- and time-discrete predator-prey system

The spatiotemporal dynamics of a space- and time-discrete predator-prey system is investigated in this research. The conditions for stable homogeneous stationary state of the system are derived via stability analysis. By using center manifold theorem and bifurcation theory, critical parameter values for flip bifurcation, Hopf bifurcation and Turing bifurcation are determined, respectively. Based on the bifurcation analysis, pattern formation conditions are also provided. Numerical simulations are performed not only to illustrate the theoretical results, but also to exhibit new and complex dynamical behaviors, including period-doubling cascade, invariant circles, periodic windows, chaotic dynamics, and pattern formation. Maximum Lyapunov exponents are calculated to distinguish chaos from regular behaviors. In the routes from bifurcation to chaos, flip-Turing instability and Hopf-Turing instability emerge, capturing the formation of diverse complex patterns, such as mosaic, circle, spiral, spatiotemporal chaotic patterns, and so on. The analysis and results in this research contribute to a new understanding on the relationship among bifurcation, chaos and pattern formation.