The Roles of Biotic Interactions and Environmental Factors on Multispecies Dynamics

Abstract

The distributions of species in their habitats are constantly changing. This phenomenon is thought to be determined by species’ environmental tolerance and biotic interactions for limited resources and space. Consequently, predicting the future distribution of species is a major challenge in ecology. To address this problem, we use mathematical model to study the combined effects of biotic interactions (e.g. competition) and environmental factors on multiple species community assembly in a heterogenous environment. To gain insights into the dynamics of this ecological system, we perform both analytical and numerical analyses of the range margins of the species. We observe that the range margins of the species can be influenced by biotic interactions combined with environmental factors. Depending on the strength of biotic interactions, our model exhibits coexistence of species and priority effects; mediated by weak and intense biotic interactions respectively. We also show the existence of bifurcation points (i.e. the threshold values of competition coefficient) which lead to the presence—absence of different species. Thus, we suggest that adequate knowledge of biotic interactions and changes in the environments is important for effective maintenance of biodiversity and conservation management.