Complex Dynamics Due to Multiple Limit Cycle Bifurcations in a Tritrophic Food Chain Model

Abstract

In this paper, we consider a tritrophic food chain model with Holling functional response types III and IV for the predator and superpredator, respectively. The main attention is focused on the stability and bifurcation of equilibria when the prey has a linear growth. Coexistence of different species is shown in the food chain, demonstrating bistable phenomenon. Hopf bifurcation is studied to show complex dynamics due to multiple limit cycles bifurcation. In particular, normal form theory is applied to prove that three limit cycles can bifurcate from an equilibrium in the vicinity of a Hopf critical point, yielding a new bistable phenomenon which involves two stable limit cycles.