Beyond water limitation in vegetation-autotoxicity patterning: a cross-diffusion model

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Giannino, Francesco, Iuorio, Annalisa, Soresina, Cinzia
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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_version_ 1866914480726736896
author Giannino, Francesco
Iuorio, Annalisa
Soresina, Cinzia
author_facet Giannino, Francesco
Iuorio, Annalisa
Soresina, Cinzia
contents Many mathematical models describing vegetation patterns are based on biomass--water interactions, due to the impact of this limited resource in arid and semi-arid environments. However, in recent years, a novel biological factor called autotoxicity has proved to play a key role in vegetation spatiotemporal dynamics, particularly by inhibiting biomass growth and increasing its natural mortality rate. In a standard reaction-diffusion framework, biomass-toxicity dynamics alone are unable to support the emergence of stable spatial patterns. In this paper, we derive a cross-diffusion model for biomass and toxicity dynamics as the fast-reaction limit of a three-species system involving dichotomy and different time scales. Within this general framework, in addition to growth inhibition and extra-mortality already considered in previous studies, the additional effect of ''propagation reduction'' induced by autotoxicity on vegetation dynamics is obtained. By combining linearised analysis, simulations, and continuation, we investigate the formation of spatial patterns. Thanks to the cross-diffusion term, for the first time, a spatial model based solely on biomass-toxicity feedback without explicit water dynamics supports the formation of stable (Turing) vegetation patterns for a wide range of parameter values.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2506_03981
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Beyond water limitation in vegetation-autotoxicity patterning: a cross-diffusion model
Giannino, Francesco
Iuorio, Annalisa
Soresina, Cinzia
Dynamical Systems
Pattern Formation and Solitons
35K57, 35B36, 35B32, 35Q92, 65P30, 92D40
Many mathematical models describing vegetation patterns are based on biomass--water interactions, due to the impact of this limited resource in arid and semi-arid environments. However, in recent years, a novel biological factor called autotoxicity has proved to play a key role in vegetation spatiotemporal dynamics, particularly by inhibiting biomass growth and increasing its natural mortality rate. In a standard reaction-diffusion framework, biomass-toxicity dynamics alone are unable to support the emergence of stable spatial patterns. In this paper, we derive a cross-diffusion model for biomass and toxicity dynamics as the fast-reaction limit of a three-species system involving dichotomy and different time scales. Within this general framework, in addition to growth inhibition and extra-mortality already considered in previous studies, the additional effect of ''propagation reduction'' induced by autotoxicity on vegetation dynamics is obtained. By combining linearised analysis, simulations, and continuation, we investigate the formation of spatial patterns. Thanks to the cross-diffusion term, for the first time, a spatial model based solely on biomass-toxicity feedback without explicit water dynamics supports the formation of stable (Turing) vegetation patterns for a wide range of parameter values.
title Beyond water limitation in vegetation-autotoxicity patterning: a cross-diffusion model
topic Dynamical Systems
Pattern Formation and Solitons
35K57, 35B36, 35B32, 35Q92, 65P30, 92D40
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.03981