PIGS STEALING AND WOLFED DOWN PIGLETS: THE INFLUENCE OF KLEPTOPARASITISM ON A SIMPLE TROPHIC NETWORK
Giacomo Innocenti, Massimo F. D. Materassi
In ecological models complexity often arises due to the presence of interactions complicating, in an apparently slight way, the trophic network. An example of this the is the case of kleptoparasitism: a herbivorous scavenger B competes with the predator W for carcasses of preys D. B may be preyed on by W, in its juvenile age, and it competes with D for the common resource of vegetation. The scenario is inspired by the behavior of wild boar of the Northern Apennine, Italy, competing with wolves for carcasses of fallow deer. The dynamical system presented here is a version of a model already studied by the authors, simplified in order to single out the essence of kleptoparasitism as an interaction giving rise to complexity.