Toxin-allelopathy among phytoplankton species prevents competitive exclusion

Roy, S. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2543-924X and Chattopadhyay, J. (2007) Toxin-allelopathy among phytoplankton species prevents competitive exclusion. Journal of Biological Systems, 15 (1). pp. 73-93. ISSN 1793-6470 doi: 10.1142/S021833900700209X

Abstract/Summary

Toxic or allelopathic compounds liberated by toxin-producing phytoplankton (TPP) acts as a strong mediator in plankton dynamics. On an analysis of a set of phytoplankton biomass data that have been collected by our group in the northwest part of the Bay of Bengal, and by analysis of a three-component mathematical model under a constant as well as a stochastic environment, we explore the role of toxin-allelopathy in determining the dynamic behavior of the competing phytoplankton species. The overall results, based on analytical and numerical wings, demonstrate that toxin-allelopathy due to the TPP promotes a stable co-existence of those competitive phytoplankton that would otherwise exhibit competitive exclusion of the weak species. Our study suggests that TPP might be a potential candidate for maintaining the co-existence and diversity of competing phytoplankton species.