Reducing competition vs. improving resistance to disturbances in the environment

We study a metapopulation model for competition between two species in environments affected by regular disturbances. We give precise conditions for the coexistence of both species. We show that both species are more likely to coexist under an intermediate disturbance frequency. Since the rates of interspecific competition, as well as the frequency of the disturbances in the environment are given explicitly, it is possible to analyze the role they play in determining the final equilibrium level of the species involved. Special interest is given to comparing the effect of increasing resistance of the weak species to the environmental disturbances versus reducing the competition rate. It turns out that reducing the competition rate is never the better strategy under these conditions. © Springer-Verlag 1999.