Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 20, 2026

Necropsy-based Wild Fish Health Assessment
Published on: September 11, 2018
Enrichment and ecosystem stability: effect of toxic food
Shovonlal Roy1, J Chattopadhyay
1Agricultural and Ecological Research Unit, Indian Statistical Institute, 203, B.T. Road, Kolkata 700108, India.
Abstract:
Enrichment in resource availability theoretically destabilizes predator-prey dynamics (the paradox of enrichment). However, a minor change in the resource stoichiometry may make a prey toxic for the predator, and the presence of toxic prey affects the dynamics significantly. Here, theoretically we explore how, at increased carrying capacity, a toxic prey affects the oscillation or destabilization of predator-prey dynamics, and how its presence influences the growth of the predator as well as that of a palatable prey. Mathematical analysis determines the bounds on the food toxicity that allow the coexistence of a predator along with a palatable and a toxic prey. The overall results demonstrate that toxic food counteracts oscillation (destabilization) arising from enrichment of resource availability. Moreover, our results show that, at increased resource availability, toxic food that acts as a source of extra mortality may increase the abundance of the predator as well as that of the palatable prey.
Related Concept Videos
Toxicity Testing in Animals
Types of Toxins
Air pollutants, primarily gases, pose significant threats to respiratory health, leading to conditions like hypoxia, lung cancer, and in extreme cases, death.
Environmental pollutants like...
Toxic Reactions: Overview
Toxicity falls into two primary categories: local and systemic.
Local toxicity appears at the exposure site, such as protein denaturation caused by caustic substances.
In contrast, systemic toxicity requires the toxic agent's absorption and distribution,...
The Periodic Table and Organismal Elements
Periodic Table Provides Information...
The Periodic Table and Organismal Elements
Drug Toxicity: Dose-Dependent Reactions

