Modification speed alters stability of ecological higher-order interaction networks

TL;DR

This paper investigates how the speed at which higher-order interactions (HOIs) begin affects the stability and evolution of ecological networks, revealing that HOI onset speed can reverse stability and influence equilibrium states.

Contribution

It introduces a novel analysis of the impact of HOI onset speed on the stability of three-species ecological networks, highlighting its importance in ecological modeling.

Findings

HOI onset speed dramatically affects network stability.

Changing HOI speed can reverse stability of the system.

HOI onset speed influences the equilibrium state reached.

Abstract

Higher-order interactions (HOIs) have the potential to greatly increase our understanding of ecological interaction networks beyond what is possible with established models that usually consider only pairwise interactions between organisms. While equilibrium values of such HOI-based models have been studied, the dynamics of these models and the stability of their equilibria remain underexplored. Here we present a novel investigation on the effect of the onset speed of a higher-order interaction. In particular, we study the stability of the equilibrium of all configurations of a three-species interaction network, including transitive as well as intransitive ones. We show that the HOI onset speed has a dramatic effect on the evolution and stability of the ecological network, with significant structural changes compared to commonly used HOI extensions or pairwise networks. Changes in the HOI onset speed from fast to slow can reverse the stability of the interaction network. The evolution of the system also affects the equilibrium that will be reached, influenced by the HOI onset speed. This implies that the HOI onset speed is an important determinant in the dynamics of ecological systems, and including it in models of ecological networks can improve our understanding thereof.