We consider a system of partial differential equations that describes the interaction of the sterile and fertile species undergoing the sterile insect release method (SIRM). Unlike in the previous work [M. A. Lewis and P. van den Driessche, Waves of extinction from sterile insect release, Math. Biosci.5 (1992) 221–247] where the habitat is assumed to be the one-dimensional whole space ℝ, we consider this system in a bounded one-dimensional domain (interval). Our goal is to derive sufficient conditions for success of the SIRM. We show the existence of the fertile-free steady state and prove its stability. Using the releasing rate as the parameter, and by a saddle-node bifurcation analysis, we obtain conditions for existence of two co-persistence steady states, one stable and the other unstable. Biological implications of our mathematical results are that: (i) when the fertile population is at low level, the SIRM, even with small releasing rate, can successfully eradicate the fertile insects; (ii) when the fertile population is at a higher level, the SIRM can succeed as long as the strength of the sterile releasing is large enough, while the method may also fail if the releasing is not sufficient.
Limit of 𝑝-Laplacian obstacle problems
