ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Appl. Math. Stat.
Sec. Dynamical Systems
Volume 11 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fams.2025.1642676
Epidemic Dynamics in the Spatio-Temporal Predator-Prey Model
Provisionally accepted
- Texas A&M University Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, United States
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In this work, we develop a novel mathematical model to simulate the spatio-temporal dynamics of epidemics in a predator-prey system. The model integrates the classical Lotka-Volterra predator-prey framework with a Susceptible-Infected-Susceptible disease model and explicitly incorporates diffusion terms to capture spatial movement. This unified approach allows us to simultaneously analyze susceptible and infected prey and predator populations, and account for both ecological and spatial interactions. An extension beyond traditional models that often treat these processes separately. The model consists of four partial differential equations and includes key ecological factors such as growth and mortality rates, predation, reproduction, and carrying capacity. Through extensive numerical simulations across a wide range of ecological and epidemiological parameters, we systematically investigate how disease transmission and spatial diffusion shape population dynamics. The results reveal that spatial movement plays a critical role in determining species distribution and infection persistence, highlighting the complex interplay between disease spread and ecosystem stability.
Keywords: Eco-epidemiology, predator-prey interactions, Reaction-diffusion equations, Spatio-temporal dynamics, Partial Differential Equations, Population Dynamics, ecological modeling
Received: 07 Jun 2025; Accepted: 29 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Ji, Vasilyeva, Mbroh and Sadovski. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Nana Adjoah Mbroh, Texas A&M University Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, United States
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