Effect of localization on the stability of mutualistic ecological networks

Samir Suweis (), Jacopo Grilli, Jayanth R. Banavar, Stefano Allesina and Amos Maritan
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Samir Suweis: University of Padua, Consorzio Nazionale Interuniversitario per le Scienze Fisiche della Materia and Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare
Jacopo Grilli: University of Chicago
Jayanth R. Banavar: University of Maryland
Stefano Allesina: University of Chicago
Amos Maritan: University of Padua, Consorzio Nazionale Interuniversitario per le Scienze Fisiche della Materia and Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare

Nature Communications, 2015, vol. 6, issue 1, 1-7

Abstract: Abstract The relationships between the core–periphery architecture of the species interaction network and the mechanisms ensuring the stability in mutualistic ecological communities are still unclear. In particular, most studies have focused their attention on asymptotic resilience or persistence, neglecting how perturbations propagate through the system. Here we develop a theoretical framework to evaluate the relationship between the architecture of the interaction networks and the impact of perturbations by studying localization, a measure describing the ability of the perturbation to propagate through the network. We show that mutualistic ecological communities are localized, and localization reduces perturbation propagation and attenuates its impact on species abundance. Localization depends on the topology of the interaction networks, and it positively correlates with the variance of the weighted degree distribution, a signature of the network topological heterogeneity. Our results provide a different perspective on the interplay between the architecture of interaction networks in mutualistic communities and their stability.

Date: 2015
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms10179

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