Existence, uniqueness, stability and bifurcation of periodic patterns for a seasonal single phytoplankton model with self-shading effect

Abstract

We study the existence, uniqueness, global attractivity and bifurcation of time-periodic patterns for a seasonal phytoplankton model with self-shading effect. By the comparison principle, we obtain the globally asymptotical stability of the zero solution when the principal eigenvalue λ1 is less than zero. When λ1>0, by transforming the model into a new system, we successfully prove the conjecture in previous studies on the uniqueness and attractivity of the positive periodic solution. The positive periodic pattern bifurcating from the zero solution is a very interesting phenomenon. Here we apply the Crandall and Rabinowiz's theory to prove rigorously the existence of a bifurcation point. By way of asymptotic analysis, we derive an asymptotic formula for the positive periodic pattern. Based on the solution formula, we find the linear stability of this positive pattern. Finally, we provide a numerical scheme for the calculations of the principal eigenvalue and the simulations of the solution. The simulations corroborate our theoretical analysis.