Population Growth Models

 Jenn is studying a population of fish found in a pond that has a decreasing carrying capacity.  Which of the following factors would not decrease the carrying capacity of her fish? 

• drought
• flooding
• food shortages 
•  a freeze  

Mullet are local estuarine fish that move in schools and feed on plankton and plant matter. Natural predators of the mullet include spotted sea trout, sharks, pelicans and dolphins. The graph below shows how the number of mullet in an area has changed over time. 
Based on the data, one student concludes that a new predator was introduced into the area during this time period. Which of the following is a likely alternate explanation for the change in the mullet population?

• mullet prey increased in the area
•  mullet parasites decreased in the area
• the temperature of the area increased
• the amount of aquatic plants in the area decreased

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-1

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

^{_{What type of growth is represented in this graph?}}

• exponential
• logistics
• a good kind
• representative

_{What type of growth is represented by this graph?}

• exponential
• logistics
• a good kind
• representative

_{What is the carrying capacity of the graph?}

• around 500
• more than 500
• less than 500
• around 600

_{When a population grows past the ecosystem's carrying capacity, what happens to the population?}

• Continues to grow
• The population starts to die off to return to carrying capcity
• The population will go extinct due to lack of resources
• The population grows then finds a new carrying capacity

Immigration means for individuals to move into a population.
Emigration means for individuals to move out of a population.
On remote islands, immigration and emigration usually do not have a large effect on population sizes. A bird population on a remote island remains at a relatively constant size year after year. Which of the following most likely describes the birthrate and the death rate for this population? 

•  Birthrate and death rate are both zero 
•  Birthrate and death rate are close to equal. 
• Birthrate is significantly less than death rate. 
• Birthrate is significantly greater than death rate. 

What will happen to the population when the death rate is larger than the birth rate?

• grow
• shrink
• stay the same
• None of these

Tags

NGSS.HS-LS2-6

NGSS.HS-LS4-5

Natural disasters and weather patterns like earthquakes, floods, and tornadoes, blizzards, and heatwaves are considered ___________ ____________ limiting factors

• Density-dependent
• Density-independent

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS3-2

Will competition increase/decrease the carrying capacity of an ecosystem for the animal in competition?

• Decrease
• Increase

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-4