The role of selective extinction in promoting cooperation in a many demes model

•Diffusion approximation captures evolutionary dynamics.,•Uniform extinction suppresses cooperation in structured populations.,•Targeted extinction can promote cooperation.,•Extinction rate’s impact depends on payoff asymmetry (T−R vs. P−S). This study investigates the evolution of cooperation in a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of theoretical biology Vol. 613; p. 112212
Main Author: Kroumi, Dhaker
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: England Elsevier Ltd 07.10.2025
Subjects:
Animals
Biological Evolution
Cooperative Behavior
Diffusion approximation
Extinction, Biological
Extinction-recolonization Mathematics Subject Classification
Fixation probability
Humans
Identity by descent
Island model
Models, Biological
Population Dynamics
Primary 91A25
Prisoner Dilemma
Prisoner’s dilemma
Reproduction
Secondary 60J70
Diffusion approximation
Secondary 60J70
Prisoner’s dilemma
Island model
Primary 91A25
Identity by descent
Extinction-recolonization Mathematics Subject Classification
Fixation probability
ISSN:0022-5193, 1095-8541, 1095-8541
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:•Diffusion approximation captures evolutionary dynamics.,•Uniform extinction suppresses cooperation in structured populations.,•Targeted extinction can promote cooperation.,•Extinction rate’s impact depends on payoff asymmetry (T−R vs. P−S). This study investigates the evolution of cooperation in a deme-structured population where individuals interact via the Prisoner’s Dilemma. Reproduction is payoff-dependent, and demes contribute to a global migrant pool proportionally to their fecundity. Deme extinction occurs with a baseline probability plus an additional probability term that is proportional to the fraction of defectors in the deme, modulated by a parameter α. Extinct demes are then repopulated from the migrant pool. A two-timescale analysis, valid in the limit of a large number of demes, reveals that the system’s evolutionary dynamics are well-approximated by a continuous-time diffusion process. Using this diffusion approximation, we show that uniform extinction (α=0) suppresses cooperation. However, extinction targeting defector-dominated demes can significantly promote cooperation, establishing critical thresholds of α that determine when cooperation dominates. The study further explores how varying extinction rates and reproductive dynamics impact cooperation’s persistence and evolutionary success in structured populations.
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ISSN:0022-5193
1095-8541
1095-8541
DOI:10.1016/j.jtbi.2025.112212