Preferential cannibalism as a key stabilizing mechanism of intraguild predation systems with trophic polymorphic predators

Theory predicts intraguild predation (IGP) to be unstable despite its ubiquity in nature, prompting exploration of stabilizing mechanisms of IGP. One of the many ways IGP manifests is through inducible trophic polymorphisms in the intraguild (IG) predator, where a resource-eating predator morph competes with the intraguild (IG) prey for the shared resource while a top predator morph consumes the IG prey. Cannibalism is common in this type of system due to the top predator morph’s specialization on the trophic level below it, which includes the resource-eating predator morph. Here, we explore the consequences of inducible trophic polymorphisms in cannibal predators for IGP stability using an IGP model with and without cannibalism. We employ linear stability analysis and identify regions of coexistence based on the top predator morph's preference for conspecifics vs. heterospecifics and the IG prey's competitive ability relative to the resource-eating morph. Our findings reveal preferenti..., Model(s) overview: To examine the effect of preferential cannibalism in a trophic polymorphic predator on IGP system stability, we compared two models of varying complexity (Fig. 1) under two scenarios pertaining to IG prey competitive ability. The first model (referred to herein as the “base” model) is an extension of the original Lotka-Volterra IGP model first proposed by Holt and Polis (1997) with the separation of the IG predator into two states: a resource-eating morph that competes with the IG prey for the shared resource, and a top predator morph that consumes the IG prey. Biomass moves from one state to the other as a function of resource density, which is intentionally general to encompass changes in frequency of morphs across generations or individuals switching between morphs in a lifetime. In the second model (referred to herein as the “full” model), we build upon the first model to include cannibalism in the IG predator, where the top predator morph consumes both the IG pre..., , # Code for: Preferential cannibalism as a key stabilizing mechanism of intraguild predation systems with trophic polymorphic predators

Status of MS: Published in Theoretical Ecology (https://doi.org/10.1007/s12080-024-00575-7)

Authors: Clara A. Woodie and Kurt E. Anderson

# Structure of Code

1. \"Simulations.nb\" provides code for manipulating multiple parameters and observing the effect on density (for base model and full model, both Type I and Type II)
2. \"Equilibrium TypeI Full Model.nb\" solves for equilibrium across multiple parameter ranges, finds instances of bistability, and makes plots for the Type I Full Model
3. \"Equilibrium TypeI Base Model.nb\" solves for equilibrium across multiple parameter ranges, finds instances of bistability, and makes plots for the Type I Base Model
4. \"Equilibrium TypeII Full Model.nb\" solves for equilibrium across multiple parameter ranges, finds instances of bistability, and makes plots for the Type II Full Model
5. \"Equilibrium TypeII Base M...