The impact of harvesting on the evolutionary dynamics of prey species in a prey-predator systems

Matsuda and Abrams (Theor Popul Biol 45(1):76-91, 1994) initiated the exploration of self-extinction in species through evolution, focusing on the advantageous position of mutants near the extinction boundary in a prey-predator system with evolving foraging traits. Previous models lacked theoretical investigation into the long-term effects of harvesting. In our model, we introduce constant-effort prey and predator harvesting, along with individual logistic growth of predators. The model reveals two distinct evolutionary outcomes: (i) Evolutionary suicide, marked by a saddle-node bifurcation, where prey extinction results from the invasion of a lower forager mutant; and (ii) Evolutionary reversal, characterized by a subcritical Hopf bifurcation, leading to cyclic prey evolution. Employing an innovative approach based on Gröbner basis computation, we identify various bifurcation manifolds, including fold, transcritical, cusp, Hopf, and Bogdanov-Takens bifurcations. These contrasting scenarios emerge from variations in harvesting parameters while keeping other factors constant, rendering the model an intriguing subject of study.