Summary
Dramatic changes at thresholds in multiple stable ecosystems may be irreversible if caused by man. The characteristic return time to an equilibrium increases when a threshold is approached. A universal law for this increase is found, which may be used to forecast the position of a threshold by extrapolation of empirical data. Harvesting experiments on populations are proposed that can be used to verify the method. Preliminary harvesting experiments on rotifer populations display a good agreement with the theory.
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Wissel, C. A universal law of the characteristic return time near thresholds. Oecologia 65, 101–107 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00384470
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00384470