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Reordered hierarchical complexity in ecosystems with delayed interactions
Bo-Wei Qin1,2, Wenbo Sheng3, Xuzhe Qian1,3
1Research Institute of Intelligent Complex Systems, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
PNAS Nexus
|July 23, 2025
Summary
Ecosystem complexity hierarchies are challenged by time delays. Predator-prey systems, previously thought most complex, can become less complex than random systems when interactions are not instantaneous.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Theoretical Ecology
- Complex Systems
Background:
- Large ecosystems were thought to be unstable, limiting their complexity.
- A hierarchy of ecosystem complexity existed: competitive/mutualistic < random < predator-prey.
- Discrete time delays were recently found to influence ecosystem recovery times.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if hierarchical complexity holds under noninstantaneous interactions.
- To determine the impact of time delays on ecosystem complexity.
- To explore the role of continuous time delays in ecological systems.
Main Methods:
- Theoretical modeling of ecosystem interactions.
- Analysis of complexity hierarchies under varying time delay conditions.
- Validation of findings in diverse simulated ecosystems.
Main Results:
- Hierarchical complexity is not universally stable under noninstantaneous interactions.
- Time delays significantly alter the complexity of predator-prey communities, reordering the hierarchy.
- Nonmonotonic complexity changes occur with continuous time delays.
Conclusions:
- Noninstantaneous interactions, specifically time delays, fundamentally change our understanding of ecosystem complexity.
- Incorporating realistic interaction factors like time delays is crucial for accurate ecological and biophysical system analysis.
- The study reveals a more nuanced view of ecosystem stability and complexity.
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